bleak

\bliːk\

/\bliːk\/ adj

The verdict

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

Unranked
below top-frequency French
5
letters

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

Corpus desk

Index FR-bleak · bleak · French

bleak · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "B" 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 bleak
PropertyValue
Headwordbleak
LanguageFrench
Part of speechAdjective
IPA\bliːk\
Letters5
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Longue queue: rang de « bleak » en français

bleakreste hors des 100.000 mots français les plus fréquents, dans la longue queue du vocabulaire technique, archaïque ou rare, là où le doute d'orthographe frappe.

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

Rare enough to double-check

bleak is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anadjective, transcribed \bliːk\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for bleak, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so its spelling is easiest to reason about phoneme by phoneme, absent a documented history. The correct French form is bleak, spelled B-L-E-A-K.

Definition

  1. 1
    Morne, triste, maussade.
  2. 2
    Exposé au vent.
  3. 3
    Froid, glacial.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. a bleak smile
  2. a bleak future

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 "bleak"?
"bleak" is spelled B-L-E-A-K. The IPA pronunciation is \bliːk\.
What does "bleak" mean?
As an adjective, "bleak" means: Morne, triste, maussade.
How do you pronounce "bleak"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "bleak" is \bliːk\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "bleak" come from?
"bleak" 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