cheval de mer

\ʃə.val də mɛʁ\

/\ʃə.val də mɛʁ\/ noun

The verdict

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

Unranked
below top-frequency French
13
letters

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

Key facts for cheval de mer
PropertyValue
Headwordcheval de mer
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\ʃə.val də mɛʁ\
Letters13
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “cheval de mer” sits in French frequency

cheval de mer 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

cheval de mer is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed \ʃə.val də mɛʁ\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

No misspelling variants are generated for cheval de mer in our index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct French form is cheval de mer, spelled C-H-E-V-A-L- -D-E- -M-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    Hippocampe.
  2. 2
    Morse.

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 "cheval de mer"?
"cheval de mer" is spelled C-H-E-V-A-L- -D-E- -M-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is \ʃə.val də mɛʁ\.
What does "cheval de mer" mean?
As a noun, "cheval de mer" means: Hippocampe.
How do you pronounce "cheval de mer"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "cheval de mer" is \ʃə.val də mɛʁ\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "cheval de mer" come from?
"cheval de mer" 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 “cheval de mer”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is C-H-E-V-A-L- -D-E- -M-E-R - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \ʃə.val də mɛʁ\ (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