boule de neige

\bul də nɛʒ\

/\bul də nɛʒ\/ noun

The verdict

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

Unranked
below top-frequency French
14
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Neige agglomérée en forme de boule utilisée comme projectile pour les jeux d’enfants.

Key facts for boule de neige
PropertyValue
Headwordboule de neige
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\bul də nɛʒ\
Letters14
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “boule de neige” sits in French frequency

boule de neige 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

boule de neige is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed \bul də nɛʒ\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 8 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for boule de neige, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable French rules. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

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 boule de neige, spelled B-O-U-L-E- -D-E- -N-E-I-G-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Neige agglomérée en forme de boule utilisée comme projectile pour les jeux d’enfants.
  2. 2
    Objet décoratif qui contient de l’eau et des paillettes de plastique pour représenter la neige.
  3. 3
    Variété à fleurs doubles de l’obier (ou viorne obier), appelée aussi caillebotte et pelote de neige.
  4. 4
    Nom vulgaire de l’agaric champêtre, dit encore champignon des bruyères.
  5. 5
    Synonyme d’agaric des jachères (espèce de champignons).
  6. 6
    Conséquence en chaîne d’un événement.
  7. 7
    Chou-fleur.
  8. 8
    Phrase dont la longueur des mots augmente puis diminue régulièrement, ou poème dont les vers sont croissants puis décroissants.

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 "boule de neige"?
"boule de neige" is spelled B-O-U-L-E- -D-E- -N-E-I-G-E. The IPA pronunciation is \bul də nɛʒ\.
What does "boule de neige" mean?
As a noun, "boule de neige" means: Neige agglomérée en forme de boule utilisée comme projectile pour les jeux d’enfants.
How do you pronounce "boule de neige"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "boule de neige" is \bul də nɛʒ\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "boule de neige" come from?
"boule de neige" is a French word. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for this and other words across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German on PlainSpell.
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 “boule de neige”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is B-O-U-L-E- -D-E- -N-E-I-G-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \bul də nɛʒ\ (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