bon sens

\bɔ̃ sɑ̃s\

/\bɔ̃ sɑ̃s\/ noun

The verdict

“bon sens” is uncommon French (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency French
8
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Capacité de discerner clairement ce qui est évident, sans en être distrait par d’autres considérations.

Key facts for bon sens
PropertyValue
Headwordbon sens
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\bɔ̃ sɑ̃s\
Letters8
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “bon sens” sits in French frequency

bon sens 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

bon sens is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed \bɔ̃ sɑ̃s\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Capacité de discerner clairement ce qui est évident, sans en être distrait par d’autres considérations.".

No misspelling variants are generated for bon sens in our index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so spelling patterns must be inferred from the word's phoneme-to-grapheme mapping rather than from a documented borrowing chain. The correct French form is bon sens, spelled B-O-N- -S-E-N-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Capacité de discerner clairement ce qui est évident, sans en être distrait par d’autres considérations.

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 "bon sens"?
"bon sens" is spelled B-O-N- -S-E-N-S. The IPA pronunciation is \bɔ̃ sɑ̃s\.
What does "bon sens" mean?
As a noun, "bon sens" means: Capacité de discerner clairement ce qui est évident, sans en être distrait par d’autres considérations.
How do you pronounce "bon sens"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "bon sens" is \bɔ̃ sɑ̃s\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "bon sens" come from?
"bon sens" is a French word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
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.

Using “bon sens”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct French spelling is B-O-N- -S-E-N-S - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \bɔ̃ sɑ̃s\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Browse more French words and confusable pairs in the same reference. French words
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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list