canard

\ka.naʁ\

/\ka.naʁ\/ noun

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

The verdict

“canard” is a regularly-used French word, ranked #4,915 in French word frequency and used as a noun.

#4,915
frequency rank, French
6
letters
9
tracked misspellings
13
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Oiseau aquatique palmipède dont la chair est très recherchée, qu’il vive à l’état sauvage ou à l’état domestique.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

canard vs card
67% similar
canard vs canaux
67% similar
canard vs canari
83% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for canard
PropertyValue
Headwordcanard
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\ka.naʁ\
Letters6
Frequency rank#4,915
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs13
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “canard” 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). canard lands here:

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

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

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The French entry for canard is 6 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \ka.naʁ\. Corpus data places it at rank #4,915 in overall French word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 13 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for canard, with forms such as "acnard", "caanrd", and "canadr". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 13 confusable-pair relationships, "card", "canaux", "canari", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Our source data has no etymology on file 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 canard, spelled C-A-N-A-R-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    Oiseau aquatique palmipède dont la chair est très recherchée, qu’il vive à l’état sauvage ou à l’état domestique.
  2. 2
    Nouvelle fausse, bobard.
  3. 3
    Journal d’actualité de peu de valeur.
  4. 4
    Homme mené à la baguette qui cède à tous les caprices d’une femme et qui fuit toute confrontation.
  5. 5
    Homme sortant le grand jeu, offrant énormément de choses gracieusement dans l’espoir d’entamer une relation avec une femme.
  6. 6
    Morceau de sucre que l’on trempe dans un liquide, en particulier dans du café ou une eau-de-vie, avant de le manger.
  7. 7
    Fausse-note aiguë produite par un instrument à vent, le plus souvent à anche. (Voir aussi couac).
  8. 8
    Conduit d’aérage des galeries de mines.
  9. 9
    Récipient, verre, tasse, ergonomique permettant de boire, en position couchée, sans en renverser grâce notamment à une tubulure, un bec et parfois un couvercle.→ voir tasse de malade
  10. 10
    Meuble représentant l’animal du même nom dans les armoiries. Il est normalement représenté de profil mais souvent, il est présenté volant. À rapprocher de cane, canette, cygne, jars et oie.
  11. 11
    Plongeon en canard.
  12. 12
    Bouilloire.
  13. 13
    Petit bisou sur les lèvres.

Synonyms

canard domestiquefeuille de choujournal

This word in other languages

duck(English)ánade(Español)Ente(Deutsch)pata(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: acnard,caanrd,canadr,canardd,canarrd,cannard,canrad,ccanard,cnaard

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of canard - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

acnard2caanrd2canadr2canardd1canarrd1cannard1canrad2ccanard1
Edit distance from "canard"

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 "canard"?
"canard" is spelled C-A-N-A-R-D. The IPA pronunciation is \ka.naʁ\.
What does "canard" mean?
As a noun, "canard" means: Oiseau aquatique palmipède dont la chair est très recherchée, qu’il vive à l’état sauvage ou à l’état domestique.
What words are commonly confused with "canard"?
"canard" is commonly confused with "card", "canaux", "canari". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "canard"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "canard" is \ka.naʁ\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "canard" come from?
"canard" 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 “canard”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is C-A-N-A-R-D - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \ka.naʁ\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “card” - see the side-by-side comparison. canard vs card
  • 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