Provence

/pɹəˈvɒns/

//pɹəˈvɒns// name

"provence" is a 8-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“Provence” is a moderately-common English word, ranked #27,607 in English word frequency and used as a proper noun.

#27,607
frequency rank, English
8
letters
13
tracked misspellings
8
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - A maritime geographic region and former province of southeastern France bordering Italy; since 2016 included in the administrative region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

Provence vs province
75% similar
Provence vs prudence
63% similar
Provence vs provinces
67% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for Provence
PropertyValue
HeadwordProvence
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechProper noun
IPA/pɹəˈvɒns/
Letters8
Frequency rank#27,607
Misspellings tracked13
Confusable pairs8
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “Provence” sits in English frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). Provence lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The English entry for Provence is 8 letters long, classified as a proper noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /pɹəˈvɒns/. Corpus data places it at rank #27,607 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "A maritime geographic region and former province of southeastern France bordering Italy; since 2016 included in the administrative region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 13 likely wrong-spelling variants for Provence, with forms such as "porvence", "pprovence", and "proevnce". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 8 confusable-pair relationships, "province", "prudence", "provinces", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from French Provence. The correct English form is Provence, spelled P-R-O-V-E-N-C-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    A maritime geographic region and former province of southeastern France bordering Italy; since 2016 included in the administrative region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur.

Etymology

Borrowed from French Provence.

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: porvence,pprovence,proevnce,provance,provecne,provencce,provenec,provennce,provnece,provvence,prrovence,prvoence,rpovence

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of Provence - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

porvence2pprovence1proevnce2provance1provecne2provencce1provenec2provennce1
Edit distance from "Provence"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "Provence"?
"Provence" is spelled P-R-O-V-E-N-C-E. The IPA pronunciation is /pɹəˈvɒns/.
What does "Provence" mean?
As a proper noun, "Provence" means: A maritime geographic region and former province of southeastern France bordering Italy; since 2016 included in the administrative region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur.
What words are commonly confused with "Provence"?
"Provence" is commonly confused with "province", "prudence", "provinces". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "Provence"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Provence" is /pɹəˈvɒns/. 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 "Provence"?
Borrowed from French Provence. 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.

Using “Provence”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct English spelling is P-R-O-V-E-N-C-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as /pɹəˈvɒns/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “province” - see the side-by-side comparison. Provence vs province
  • Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list