coup de soleil
\ku d(ə) sɔ.lɛj\
The verdict
“coup de soleil” is outside the top-ranked French vocabulary, used as a noun - the kind of word writers most often double-check.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency French
- 14
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Brûlure de la peau provoquée par une exposition plus ou moins longue au soleil.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | coup de soleil |
| Language | French |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | \ku d(ə) sɔ.lɛj\ |
| Letters | 14 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “coup de soleil” sits in French frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The French entry for coup de soleil is 14 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \ku d(ə) sɔ.lɛj\. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
coup de soleil doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, a sign its spelling follows regular French conventions. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.
This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct French form is coup de soleil, spelled C-O-U-P- -D-E- -S-O-L-E-I-L.
Definition
- 1Brûlure de la peau provoquée par une exposition plus ou moins longue au soleil.
- 2Fragmentation d’une roche par la chaleur du jour.
- 3Dessèchement d’un tronc ou d’une branche exposé à la lumière directe du soleil.
Synonyms
This word in other languages
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
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Using “coup de soleil”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct French spelling is C-O-U-P- -D-E- -S-O-L-E-I-L - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as \ku d(ə) sɔ.lɛj\ (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.