char

\ʃaʁ\

/\ʃaʁ\/ noun

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

The verdict

“char” is a regularly-used French word, ranked #6,934 in French word frequency and used as a noun.

#6,934
frequency rank, French
4
letters
6
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

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

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

char vs CR
0% similar
char vs cia
50% similar
char vs che
50% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for char
PropertyValue
Headwordchar
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\ʃaʁ\
Letters4
Frequency rank#6,934
Misspellings tracked6
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “char” 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). char lands here:

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

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

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The French entry for char is 4 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \ʃaʁ\. Corpus data places it at rank #6,934 in overall French word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 11 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 char, with forms such as "cahr", "cchar", and "charr". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "CR", "cia", "che", 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 to reason about phoneme by phoneme, absent a documented history. The correct French form is char, spelled C-H-A-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    Chariot élevé.
  2. 2
    Véhicule hippomobile à deux roues utilisé dans l’Antiquité.
  3. 3
    Véhicule militaire armé, blindé et motorisé dont l'équipage embarqué se compose de plusieurs soldats.
  4. 4
    Ellipse de char allégorique, véhicule décoré ou thématique lors de fêtes ou carnavals.
  5. 5
    Voiture, automobile.
  6. 6
    Wagon.
  7. 7
    Autocar.
  8. 8
    Blague, bluff.
  9. 9
    Jeu du moulin, jeu de société et de réflexion à deux joueurs, sans hasard.
  10. 10
    Mesure de capacité.
  11. 11
    Mobylette.

Synonyms

char allégoriqueautoautomobilebagnolecaissevoiture

This word in other languages

wagon(English)carro(Español)Wagen(Deutsch)tanque(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: cahr,cchar,charr,chhar,chra,hcar

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of char - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

cahr2cchar1charr1chhar1chra2hcar2
Edit distance from "char"

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 "char"?
"char" is spelled C-H-A-R. The IPA pronunciation is \ʃaʁ\.
What does "char" mean?
As a noun, "char" means: Chariot élevé.
What words are commonly confused with "char"?
"char" is commonly confused with "CR", "cia", "che". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "char"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "char" is \ʃaʁ\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "char" come from?
"char" 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.

Using “char”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is C-H-A-R - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \ʃaʁ\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “CR” - see the side-by-side comparison. char vs CR
  • 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