au naturel

/əʊ nætʃəˈɹɛl/

//əʊ nætʃəˈɹɛl// adv

"au-naturel" is a 9-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“au naturel” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as an adverb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
10
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Naturally.

Corpus desk

Index EN-au-naturel · au naturel · English

au naturel · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "A" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for au naturel
PropertyValue
Headwordau naturel
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechAdverb
IPA/əʊ nætʃəˈɹɛl/
Letters10
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “au naturel” in English

au naturelfalls outside the top-100,000 ranked English words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

au naturel is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anadverb, transcribed /əʊ nætʃəˈɹɛl/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 5 senses are on record.

au naturel has no tracked misspelling variants, a sign its spelling follows regular English conventions. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from French au naturel (literally “in the natural”). The correct English form is au naturel, spelled A-U- -N-A-T-U-R-E-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    Naturally.
  2. 2
    In the plainest or simplest manner.
  3. 3
    In the nude: in the naked state.
  4. 4
    Having untrimmed pubic hair (especially of women).
  5. 5
    Without makeup and with one's natural hair color.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how au naturel appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Our chef insists on preparing this cut au naturel.
  2. Bella loved posing for the artist au naturel.

Etymology

Borrowed from French au naturel (literally “in the natural”).

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "au naturel"?
"au naturel" is spelled A-U- -N-A-T-U-R-E-L. The IPA pronunciation is /əʊ nætʃəˈɹɛl/.
What does "au naturel" mean?
As an adverb, "au naturel" means: Naturally.
How do you pronounce "au naturel"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "au naturel" is /əʊ nætʃəˈɹɛl/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "au naturel"?
Borrowed from French au naturel (literally “in the natural”). See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list