cem

prep

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

The verdict

“cem” is uncommon French (frequency #55,803 among 257,141 “C” headwords), classed as a preposition. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#55,803
frequency rank, French
257,141
“C” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Auprès de.

Key facts for cem
PropertyValue
Headwordcem
LanguageFrench
Part of speechPreposition
Letters3
Frequency rank#55,803
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “cem” 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). cem lands here:

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

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

Rare enough to double-check

cem is uncommon French at frequency #55,803 among 257,141 “C” headwords, classed as apreposition. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for cem, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Wiktionary doesn't record an etymology for this headword, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct French form is cem, spelled C-E-M.

Definition

  1. 1
    Auprès de.
  2. 2
    Près de.

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 "cem"?
"cem" is spelled C-E-M.
What does "cem" mean?
As a preposition, "cem" means: Auprès de.
What language does "cem" come from?
"cem" is a French word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
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 “cem”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is C-E-M - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Browse more French words and confusable pairs in the same reference. French words

Other uncommon French words near this rank

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