Valais

/væˈleɪ/

//væˈleɪ// name

"valais" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“Valais” is uncommon English (frequency #74,622 among 969 “V” headwords), classed as a proper noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#74,622
frequency rank, English
969
“V” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A canton of Switzerland (the French name)

Corpus desk

Index EN-valais · Valais · English

Valais · rank #74,622 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #74,622
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 969
  • PHOTO-FINISH unrolled

Nearest frequency peer: unrolled (-2 rank slots)

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.

Long-tail ranks near “Valais”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “Valais” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for Valais
PropertyValue
HeadwordValais
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechProper noun
IPA/væˈleɪ/
Letters6
Frequency rank#74,622
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “Valais” in English

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).Valaisfalls in this rarity band:

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

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Rare peers in the same band: “unrolled” (#74,620), “unrighteousness” (#74,619), “unlikable” (#74,618). Among 969 “V” headwords, “Valais” is #74,622. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

Valais is uncommon English at frequency #74,622 among 969 “V” headwords, classed as aproper noun, transcribed /væˈleɪ/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A canton of Switzerland (the French name)".

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for Valais, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

Etymologically, the entry records: Borrowed from French Valais. The correct English form is Valais, spelled V-A-L-A-I-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    A canton of Switzerland (the French name)

Etymology

Borrowed from French Valais.

This word in other languages

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 "Valais"?
"Valais" is spelled V-A-L-A-I-S. The IPA pronunciation is /væˈleɪ/.
What does "Valais" mean?
As a proper noun, "Valais" means: A canton of Switzerland (the French name)
How do you pronounce "Valais"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "Valais" is /væˈleɪ/. 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 "Valais"?
Borrowed from French Valais. 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.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "Valais", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list