cataclysme

\ka.ta.klism\

/\ka.ta.klism\/ noun

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

The verdict

“cataclysme” has 16 generated spelling variants in the French index at frequency #31,875. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#31,875
frequency rank, French
8,609
“C” headwords
16
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Bouleversement physique produit par un tremblement de terre, une inondation, etc.

Corpus desk

Index FR-cataclysme · cataclysme · French

cataclysme · rank #31,875 · 16 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #31,875
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-HIGH 16 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 8,609
  • PHOTO-FINISH Cassidy

Nearest frequency peer: Cassidy (-1 rank slots)

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Pairs de rang près de l'aimant d'erreurs « cataclysme »

Même bande de rareté: utile si une faute tombe sur un lemme voisin

corpus weight

What this shows « cataclysme » siège parmi ces pairs FrequencyWords; la profondeur des fautes est suivie à part dans le graphique d'édition.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for cataclysme
PropertyValue
Headwordcataclysme
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\ka.ta.klism\
Letters10
Frequency rank#31,875
Misspellings tracked16
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Fréquence de l'aimant d'erreurs « cataclysme »

De gauche à droite: le peu qui porte la parole quotidienne, puis la longue queue quasi invisible.cataclysmese place ici:

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

Les tics avancent en logarithme; chacun est de l'ordre de dix fois plus rare. Dans la même bande de rareté figurent « Cassidy » (#31,874), « cei » (#31,876), « carcasses » (#31,873). Parmi 8,609 lemmes en « C », « cataclysme » est au #31,875. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 16 spelling variants around cataclysme (IPA \ka.ta.klism\), anoun. Corpus frequency is #31,875 among 8,609 “C” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 16 likely wrong-spelling variants for cataclysme, with forms such as "actaclysme", "caatclysme", and "catacclysme". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, so its spelling is easiest to reason about phoneme by phoneme, absent a documented history. The correct French form is cataclysme, spelled C-A-T-A-C-L-Y-S-M-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Bouleversement physique produit par un tremblement de terre, une inondation, etc.
  2. 2
    Grand bouleversement dans un État.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how cataclysme appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Et puis, si aucun cataclysme soudain n’a décisivement transformé l’aspect naturel des choses, d’un seul coup, depuis un siècle, il est cependant vrai qu’au ralenti une catastrophe inéluctable impose à cette partie de la France, cette fatale loi d’impermanence.
  2. Nous avons une bonne dizaine d'années devant nous pour contrer les effets toxiques des prédictions des millénaristes, des bonimenteurs religieux et des prophètes de malheur de toutes sortes qui prédisent un grand cataclysme pour l'an 2000.

Synonyms

catastrophe

This word in other languages

cataclysm(English)cataclismo(Español)Naturkatastrophe(Deutsch)cataclismo(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • actaclysme
  • caatclysme
  • catacclysme
  • catacllysme
  • cataclsyme
  • cataclymse
  • cataclysem
  • cataclysmme
  • cataclyssme
  • cataclyysme
  • catacylsme
  • catalcysme
  • catcalysme
  • cattaclysme
  • ccataclysme
  • ctaaclysme

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of cataclysme - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

actaclysme2caatclysme2catacclysme1catacllysme1cataclsyme2cataclymse2cataclysem2cataclysmme1
Edit distance from "cataclysme"

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 "cataclysme"?
"cataclysme" is spelled C-A-T-A-C-L-Y-S-M-E. The IPA pronunciation is \ka.ta.klism\.
What does "cataclysme" mean?
As a noun, "cataclysme" means: Bouleversement physique produit par un tremblement de terre, une inondation, etc.
What are common misspellings of "cataclysme"?
Common misspellings include "actaclysme", "caatclysme", "catacclysme", "catacllysme", "cataclsyme". The correct spelling is "cataclysme".
How do you pronounce "cataclysme"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "cataclysme" is \ka.ta.klism\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "cataclysme" come from?
"cataclysme" 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.

Similar French words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "cataclysme", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked French headwords with 10 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

claquettes#31,887bousculent#31,858conciliant#31,895bilatéraux#31,849

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (16 here; floor ≥5).

diabétiques16 variantsdispendieux16 variantsdécroissant16 variantsaffreusement16 variants

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list