calebasse

\kal.bas\

/\kal.bas\/ noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

The verdict

“calebasse” is uncommon French (frequency #70,452 among 257,141 “C” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#70,452
frequency rank, French
257,141
“C” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Fruit du calebassier.

Key facts for calebasse
PropertyValue
Headwordcalebasse
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\kal.bas\
Letters9
Frequency rank#70,452
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “calebasse” sits in French frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). calebasse lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

calebasse is uncommon French at frequency #70,452 among 257,141 “C” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed \kal.bas\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 5 senses are on record.

No generated misspelling entries exist for calebasse in our index, suggesting the orthography follows predictable French patterns. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct French form is calebasse, spelled C-A-L-E-B-A-S-S-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Fruit du calebassier.
  2. 2
    Un de ces fruits, vidé et séché, et qui sert à contenir des boissons et à divers autres emplois.
  3. 3
    Nom usuel en Afrique francophone de la plante et de son fruit, de la famille des Cucurbitaceae (Cucurbitacées), nommés Lagenaria siceraria, dont les fruits jeunes sont mangés cuits. Le fruit sec, mature et évidé est utilisé comme contenant.
  4. 4
    Tête.
  5. 5
    Petit appareil, proche du cubilot, utilisé pour fondre des métaux en petite quantité.

Synonyms

courge bouteille

This word in other languages

calabash(English)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 French corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "calebasse"?
"calebasse" is spelled C-A-L-E-B-A-S-S-E. The IPA pronunciation is \kal.bas\.
What does "calebasse" mean?
As a noun, "calebasse" means: Fruit du calebassier.
How do you pronounce "calebasse"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "calebasse" is \kal.bas\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "calebasse" come from?
"calebasse" 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 “calebasse”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is C-A-L-E-B-A-S-S-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \kal.bas\ (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

Other uncommon French words near this rank

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