carreau
\ka.ʁo\
The verdict
“carreau” is a moderately-common French word, ranked #15,826 in French word frequency and used as a noun.
- #15,826
- frequency rank, French
- 7
- letters
- 7
- tracked misspellings
- 16
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Objet plat, ou ouverture, au contour approximativement carré.
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 | carreau |
| Language | French |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | \ka.ʁo\ |
| Letters | 7 |
| Frequency rank | #15,826 |
| Misspellings tracked | 7 |
| Confusable pairs | 16 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “carreau” sits in French frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The French entry for carreau is 7 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \ka.ʁo\. Corpus data places it at rank #15,826 in overall French word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 13 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for carreau, with forms such as "acrreau", "careau", and "carerau". 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 16 confusable-pair relationships, "carrés", "carrée", "caveau", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
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 carreau, spelled C-A-R-R-E-A-U.
Definition
- 1Objet plat, ou ouverture, au contour approximativement carré.
- 2Dessin symétrique formé par le croisement à angle droit de lignes, de bandes verticales et horizontales, quadrillage.
- 3Coussin carré dont on se servait pour se mettre à genoux ou pour poser ses pieds.
- 4Coussin enclavé dans un châssis sur lequel les dentelières font manœuvrer leurs fuseaux.
- 5Munition de l’arbalète ; grosse flèche courte à empennage de cuir ne comptant que deux ailettes, et à fer en losange à quatre pans.
- 6Dalle de céramique ou de terre cuite utilisée comme revêtement de sol ou de mur.
- 7Sol pavé de ces carreaux.
- 8L’endroit des halles, où l’on étale les légumes et les fruits.
- 9Dalle de plâtre ou de béton cellulaire destinée à la construction des cloisons.
- 10Sorte de gros fer à repasser dont les tailleurs se servaient pour aplatir les coutures des habits.
- 11Ensemble des installations de surface d’une mine, entourant le puits d’extraction.
- 12Bassin de faible profondeur utilisé pour la production du sel dans les marais salants.
- 13Mesure de superficie anciennement usitée en France.
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: acrreau,careau,carerau,carraeu,carreua,ccarreau,crareau
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of carreau - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.
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 "carreau"?
What does "carreau" mean?
What words are commonly confused with "carreau"?
How do you pronounce "carreau"?
What language does "carreau" come from?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “carreau”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct French spelling is C-A-R-R-E-A-U - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as \ka.ʁo\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “carrés” - see the side-by-side comparison. carreau vs carrés
- 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.