tse-tsé

[ˈse ˈse]

/[ˈse ˈse]/ noun

The verdict

“tse-tsé” is uncommon Spanish (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency Spanish
7
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Nombre vulgar de las moscas hematófagas africanas pertenecientes al género Glossina. Algunas especies transmiten el Tripanosoma brucei protozoo que produce la enfermedad del sueño, otras, el Tripan...

Corpus desk

Index ES-tse-tse · tse-tsé · Spanish

tse-tsé · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "T" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

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 tse-tsé
PropertyValue
Headwordtse-tsé
LanguageSpanish
Part of speechNoun
IPA[ˈse ˈse]
Letters7
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Cola larga: rango de “tse-tsé” en español

tse-tséestá más allá de las 100.000 formas más frecuentes del español, en la cola de léxico especializado o poco usado donde la duda ortográfica aprieta.

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

Rare enough to double-check

tse-tsé is uncommon Spanish outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed [ˈse ˈse]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Nombre vulgar de las moscas hematófagas africanas pertenecientes al género Glossina. Algunas especies transmiten el Tripanosoma brucei protozoo que produce la enfermedad del sueño, otras, el Tripan...".

No misspelling variants are generated for tse-tsé in our index, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Wiktionary doesn't record an etymology for this headword, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct Spanish form is tse-tsé, spelled T-S-E---T-S-É.

Definition

  1. 1
    Nombre vulgar de las moscas hematófagas africanas pertenecientes al género Glossina. Algunas especies transmiten el Tripanosoma brucei protozoo que produce la enfermedad del sueño, otras, el Tripanosoma rhodesiense. La enfermedad del sueño incapacita gravemente a la población afectada, disminuyendo su capacidad para trabajar.

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 "tse-tsé"?
"tse-tsé" is spelled T-S-E---T-S-É. The IPA pronunciation is [ˈse ˈse].
What does "tse-tsé" mean?
As a noun, "tse-tsé" means: Nombre vulgar de las moscas hematófagas africanas pertenecientes al género Glossina. Algunas especies transmiten el Tripanosoma brucei protozoo que produce la enfermedad del sueño, otras, el Tripan...
How do you pronounce "tse-tsé"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "tse-tsé" is [ˈse ˈse]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "tse-tsé" come from?
"tse-tsé" is a Spanish word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
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