à l’heure

\a l‿œʁ\

/\a l‿œʁ\/ adj

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

The verdict

“à l’heure” is uncommon French (outside the top frequency list), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency French
9
letters

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

Corpus desk

Index FR-a-l-heure · à l’heure · French

à l’heure · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "À" 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 à l’heure
PropertyValue
Headwordà l’heure
LanguageFrench
Part of speechAdjective
IPA\a l‿œʁ\
Letters9
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “à l’heure” sits in French frequency

à l’heure falls outside the top-100,000 ranked French 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

à l’heure is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anadjective, transcribed \a l‿œʁ\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.

à l’heure doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, suggesting the orthography follows predictable French patterns. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct French form is à l’heure, spelled À- -L-’-H-E-U-R-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Ponctuel.
  2. 2
    Exact, en parlant d’une horloge, d’une montre, d’une pendule.
  3. 3
    Payé à l’heure de travail effectué.
  4. 4
    Par heure.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Avec ma détestable manie d'être à l'heure, je suis toujours le premier.
  2. Paolo m'attend déjà devant les portes tournantes pour la pause-déjeuner. Il a son regard agacé des jours où je ne suis pas parfaitement à l'heure.

Antonyms

en retardà la bourreà la tâcheà la journéeau mois

This word in other languages

on time(English)rechtzeitig(Deutsch)na hora(Português)

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "à l’heure"?
"à l’heure" is spelled À- -L-’-H-E-U-R-E. The IPA pronunciation is \a l‿œʁ\.
What does "à l’heure" mean?
As an adjective, "à l’heure" means: Ponctuel.
How do you pronounce "à l’heure"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "à l’heure" is \a l‿œʁ\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "à l’heure" come from?
"à l’heure" is a French 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.

What to do next

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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