circonspect
French, adjective/siʁ.kɔ̃s.pɛ/
circonspect is spelled C-I-R-C-O-N-S-P-E-C-T (11 letters) and appears about once in every 2 million words in written French, the 46,078th most frequent French word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). Circonspect is a French adjective meaning “circumspect, cautious, prudent” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The French Wiktionary (Wiktionnaire) defines it as “Qui prend garde à ce qu’il dit, à ce qu’il fait, en ayant égard aux circonstances, au milieu. Qui ne s’engage…”.
What does circonspect mean in English?
adjective
- 1
circumspect, cautious, prudent
Source: English Wiktionary, French section, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0).
How French dictionaries define it
adjective: 1. Qui prend garde à ce qu’il dit, à ce qu’il fait, en ayant égard aux circonstances, au milieu. Qui ne s’engage qu’après examen. 2. Qui marque de la circonspection.
The definition in the French Wiktionary (Wiktionnaire), in French.
Source: French Wiktionary (Wiktionnaire), dump of September 1, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org.
Forms of circonspect
- circonspecte feminine
- circonspects masculine plural
- circonspectes feminine plural
Source: English Wiktionary and French Wiktionary (Wiktionnaire) (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026).
How do you pronounce circonspect?
- /siʁ.kɔ̃s.pɛ/
- /siʁ.kɔ̃s.pɛkt/
- \siʁ.kɔ̃s.pɛ\
Sources: English Wiktionary, French Wiktionary (Wiktionnaire) (dumps of September 2, 2026 and September 1, 2026); recordings from Wikimedia Commons.
English words that translate to circonspect
Source: the translation tables of the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026.
How common is circonspect in French?
circonspect appears about once in every 2 million words in written French.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).