canon
\ka.nɔ̃\
The verdict
“canon” is a regularly-used French word, ranked #3,385 in French word frequency and used as a noun.
- #3,385
- frequency rank, French
- 5
- letters
- 6
- tracked misspellings
- 20
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Pièce d’artillerie en forme de tube, et servant à lancer des projectiles, boulets, obus, etc.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | canon |
| Language | French |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | \ka.nɔ̃\ |
| Letters | 5 |
| Frequency rank | #3,385 |
| Misspellings tracked | 6 |
| Confusable pairs | 20 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “canon” sits in French frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The French entry for canon is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \ka.nɔ̃\. Corpus data places it at rank #3,385 in overall French word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 10 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 6 likely wrong-spelling variants for canon, with forms such as "acnon", "canno", and "canonn". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "con", "CNN", "caro", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.
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 canon, spelled C-A-N-O-N.
Definition
- 1Pièce d’artillerie en forme de tube, et servant à lancer des projectiles, boulets, obus, etc.
- 2Pièce d’artillerie en forme de tube, et servant à lancer des projectiles, boulets, obus, etc.
- 3Partie d’une arme à feu portative en forme de tube où l'on mettait autrefois la poudre et la balle et où on engage aujourd’hui la cartouche.
- 4Dispositif permettant de projeter diverses matières.
- 5Partie creuse d’un objet, tube.
- 6Partie de la jambe du cheval sous le genou et le jarret et au dessus du boulet et du paturon.
- 7Pièce vestimentaire décorative, faite de toile ornée de dentelle et de rubans, qui se portait attachée au-dessous du genou.
- 8Vase cylindrique en faïence utilisé autrefois par les pharmaciens d’officine, qui repose souvent sur un piédouche.
- 9Meuble représentant l’arme du même nom dans les armoiries. Ce terme fait référence au fût du canon et non à la pièce d’artillerie dans son ensemble (fût/affût). C’est pourquoi on précise dans les blasonnements qu’il est affûté ou sur son affût.
- 10Ornement extérieur représentant l’arme du même nom. Généralement présenté par paires, ils servent de support aux armoiries.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: acnon,canno,canonn,caonn,ccanon,cnaon
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of canon - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
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
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Using “canon”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct French spelling is C-A-N-O-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as \ka.nɔ̃\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “con” - see the side-by-side comparison. canon vs con
- 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.