caractère spécial

\ka.ʁak.tɛʁ spe.sjal\

/\ka.ʁak.tɛʁ spe.sjal\/ noun

The verdict

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

Unranked
below top-frequency French
17
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Caractère qui n’est pas alphanumérique, ni caractère de contrôle.

Key facts for caractère spécial
PropertyValue
Headwordcaractère spécial
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\ka.ʁak.tɛʁ spe.sjal\
Letters17
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “caractère spécial” sits in French frequency

caractère spécial 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

caractère spécial is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed \ka.ʁak.tɛʁ spe.sjal\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Caractère qui n’est pas alphanumérique, ni caractère de contrôle.".

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for caractère spécial, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. Our dataset records no confusable match here, 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 best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct French form is caractère spécial, spelled C-A-R-A-C-T-È-R-E- -S-P-É-C-I-A-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    Caractère qui n’est pas alphanumérique, ni caractère de contrôle.

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 "caractère spécial"?
"caractère spécial" is spelled C-A-R-A-C-T-È-R-E- -S-P-É-C-I-A-L. The IPA pronunciation is \ka.ʁak.tɛʁ spe.sjal\.
What does "caractère spécial" mean?
As a noun, "caractère spécial" means: Caractère qui n’est pas alphanumérique, ni caractère de contrôle.
How do you pronounce "caractère spécial"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "caractère spécial" is \ka.ʁak.tɛʁ spe.sjal\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "caractère spécial" come from?
"caractère spécial" is a French word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
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 “caractère spécial”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is C-A-R-A-C-T-È-R-E- -S-P-É-C-I-A-L - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \ka.ʁak.tɛʁ spe.sjal\ (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