au bout du fil

\o bu dy fil\

/\o bu dy fil\/ adv

The verdict

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

Unranked
below top-frequency French
14
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Accroché à un fil.

Corpus desk

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

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

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 14 letters
  • VOW-6 6 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 fil
PropertyValue
Headwordau bout du fil
LanguageFrench
Part of speechAdverb
IPA\o bu dy fil\
Letters14
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

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

au bout du filn'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

au bout du fil is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anadverb, transcribed \o bu dy fil\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for au bout du fil, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct French form is au bout du fil, spelled A-U- -B-O-U-T- -D-U- -F-I-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    Accroché à un fil.
  2. 2
    Au téléphone, désigne une personne à qui l’on parle à distance.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Suivant l’adage « aux innocents les mains pleines », son père n’avait pas tardé à attraper une magnifique carpe aux reflets argentés et dorés qui se débattait comme une diablesse au bout du fil, et qu’il avait bien du mal à maîtriser.
  2. Avec au bout du fil des conseillers complètement impuissants, dans l’incapacité totale de revenir sur l’oukase d’une directrice aux dents longues

Synonyms

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 "au bout du fil"?
"au bout du fil" is spelled A-U- -B-O-U-T- -D-U- -F-I-L. The IPA pronunciation is \o bu dy fil\.
What does "au bout du fil" mean?
As an adverb, "au bout du fil" means: Accroché à un fil.
How do you pronounce "au bout du fil"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "au bout du fil" is \o bu dy fil\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "au bout du fil" come from?
"au bout du fil" 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