au bout du compte

\o bu dy kɔ̃t\

/\o bu dy kɔ̃t\/ adv

The verdict

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

Unranked
below top-frequency French
17
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Tout considéré ; après tout.

Corpus desk

Index FR-au-bout-du-compte · au bout du compte · French

au bout du compte · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 17 letters
  • VOW-7 7 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 au bout du compte
PropertyValue
Headwordau bout du compte
LanguageFrench
Part of speechAdverb
IPA\o bu dy kɔ̃t\
Letters17
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Longue queue: rang de « au bout du compte » en français

au bout du comptesiège au-delà des 100.000 formes les plus fréquentes du français, dans la traîne du lexique spécialisé ou peu usité.

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

Rare enough to double-check

au bout du compte is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anadverb, transcribed \o bu dy kɔ̃t\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Tout considéré ; après tout.".

au bout du compte doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so any spelling logic here comes from how the word's sounds map to letters, not a documented origin story. The correct French form is au bout du compte, spelled A-U- -B-O-U-T- -D-U- -C-O-M-P-T-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Tout considéré ; après tout.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how au bout du compte appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. La prochaine guerre sera gagnée au bout du compte par les sous-marins et les avions, et nous devrions dépenser plus d’argent à les développer qu'à gaspiller nos ressources en construisant des dreadnoughts dont la seule fonction est de torpiller les cuirassés allemands et de se faire torpiller leur tour.
  2. Je ne me suis jamais sentie si vivante et si lucide. Tante Resara affirmait que la séduction était un sport plus excitant que la fauconnerie, et je dois dire, au bout du compte, qu’elle avait raison.

Synonyms

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 "au bout du compte"?
"au bout du compte" is spelled A-U- -B-O-U-T- -D-U- -C-O-M-P-T-E. The IPA pronunciation is \o bu dy kɔ̃t\.
What does "au bout du compte" mean?
As an adverb, "au bout du compte" means: Tout considéré ; après tout.
How do you pronounce "au bout du compte"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "au bout du compte" is \o bu dy kɔ̃t\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "au bout du compte" come from?
"au bout du compte" 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