ad libitum

\ad li.bi.tɔm\

/\ad li.bi.tɔm\/ adv

The verdict

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

Unranked
below top-frequency French
10
letters

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

Corpus desk

Index FR-ad-libitum · ad libitum · French

ad libitum · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "A" 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 ad libitum
PropertyValue
Headwordad libitum
LanguageFrench
Part of speechAdverb
IPA\ad li.bi.tɔm\
Letters10
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Longue queue: rang de « ad libitum » en français

ad libitumn'entre pas dans le top 100.000 du français: zone de termes techniques, archaïques ou rares.

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

Rare enough to double-check

ad libitum is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anadverb, transcribed \ad li.bi.tɔm\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

Zero misspellings are on record for ad libitum in our index, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

Wiktionary doesn't record an etymology for this headword, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct French form is ad libitum, spelled A-D- -L-I-B-I-T-U-M.

Definition

  1. 1
    À volonté.
  2. 2
    Au gré de l’exécutant.
  3. 3
    Sans limitation de l’alimentation, jusqu’à plus soif, à profusion.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Prenez celui des deux partis qui vous plaira, c’est ad libitum.
  2. Un peu partout ad libitum, des bibelots, des tableaux, statuettes et autres objets d’art.

Synonyms

Antonyms

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). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "ad libitum"?
"ad libitum" is spelled A-D- -L-I-B-I-T-U-M. The IPA pronunciation is \ad li.bi.tɔm\.
What does "ad libitum" mean?
As an adverb, "ad libitum" means: À volonté.
How do you pronounce "ad libitum"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "ad libitum" is \ad li.bi.tɔm\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "ad libitum" come from?
"ad libitum" 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list