corbeau

\kɔʁ.bo\

/\kɔʁ.bo\/ noun

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

The verdict

“corbeau” is a moderately-common French word, ranked #16,329 in French word frequency and used as a noun.

#16,329
frequency rank, French
7
letters
9
tracked misspellings
10
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Nom vernaculaire du grand corbeau (Corvus corax), gros oiseau passereau carnassier à plumage noir et au bec fort et noir.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

corbeau vs coteau
71% similar
corbeau vs correa
71% similar
corbeau vs couteau
71% similar

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

Key facts for corbeau
PropertyValue
Headwordcorbeau
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\kɔʁ.bo\
Letters7
Frequency rank#16,329
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs10
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “corbeau” 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). corbeau 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 corbeau is 7 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \kɔʁ.bo\. Corpus data places it at rank #16,329 in overall French word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 12 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for corbeau, with forms such as "ccorbeau", "cobreau", and "corbaeu". 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 10 confusable-pair relationships, "coteau", "correa", "couteau", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so spelling patterns must be inferred from the word's phoneme-to-grapheme mapping rather than from a documented borrowing chain. The correct French form is corbeau, spelled C-O-R-B-E-A-U.

Definition

  1. 1
    Nom vernaculaire du grand corbeau (Corvus corax), gros oiseau passereau carnassier à plumage noir et au bec fort et noir.
  2. 2
    Oiseau d’allure proche du grand corbeau (1) (freux, corneille, choucas, etc.) pouvant appartenir aux genres Corvus et Pyrrhocorax.
  3. 3
    En temps d’épidémie, personne chargée par les autorités de sortir de la ville les cadavres des pestiférés afin de les réunir dans des fosses.
  4. 4
    Nom donné quelquefois aux porteurs des morts.
  5. 5
    Nom donné quelquefois aux prêtres à cause de leurs vêtements noirs.
  6. 6
    Auteur de lettres ou de coups de téléphone anonymes.
  7. 7
    Pierre, pièce de bois ou de métal, façonnée en console, moindre en hauteur qu’en saillie, encastrée dans la maçonnerie et placée en saillie du nu d’un mur, servant à supporter une charge (poutre, corniche, balcon, etc.).
  8. 8
    Espèce de grappin d’abordage et de pont volant, utilisé par les Romains.
  9. 9
    Cépage donnant du raisin rouge nommé aussi montmélian en Savoie. Ce cépage possède une quarantaine de synonymes.
  10. 10
    Meuble représentant l’animal du même nom dans les armoiries. Il est généralement représenté de profil, debout sur ses pattes et de sable. À rapprocher de corneille.
  11. 11
    Jeu traditionnel de village.
  12. 12
    Premier grade des initiés du culte de Mithra.

Synonyms

grand corbeaucorbaccorbacquecorbingniassegrolleagrollecorvidéanonymographeconsolecoussinetdouce noirecharbonneaumontmélianmodillon

This word in other languages

raven(English)cuervo(Español)Rabe(Deutsch)corvo(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: ccorbeau,cobreau,corbaeu,corbbeau,corbeua,corebau,corrbeau,crobeau,ocrbeau

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of corbeau - 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.

ccorbeau1cobreau2corbaeu2corbbeau1corbeua2corebau2corrbeau1crobeau2
Edit distance from "corbeau"

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 "corbeau"?
"corbeau" is spelled C-O-R-B-E-A-U. The IPA pronunciation is \kɔʁ.bo\.
What does "corbeau" mean?
As a noun, "corbeau" means: Nom vernaculaire du grand corbeau (Corvus corax), gros oiseau passereau carnassier à plumage noir et au bec fort et noir.
What words are commonly confused with "corbeau"?
"corbeau" is commonly confused with "coteau", "correa", "couteau". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "corbeau"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "corbeau" is \kɔʁ.bo\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "corbeau" come from?
"corbeau" 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 “corbeau”

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

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