coup de soleil

\ku d(ə) sɔ.lɛj\

/\ku d(ə) sɔ.lɛj\/ noun

The verdict

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

Unranked
below top-frequency French
14
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Brûlure de la peau provoquée par une exposition plus ou moins longue au soleil.

Corpus desk

Index FR-coup-de-soleil · coup de soleil · French

coup de soleil · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 14 letters
  • VOW-6 6 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "C" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for coup de soleil
PropertyValue
Headwordcoup de soleil
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\ku d(ə) sɔ.lɛj\
Letters14
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Longue queue: rang de « coup de soleil » en français

coup de soleilsiège au-delà des 100.000 formes les plus fréquentes du français, dans la traîne du lexique spécialisé ou peu usité.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

coup de soleil is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed \ku d(ə) sɔ.lɛj\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

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

  1. 1
    Brûlure de la peau provoquée par une exposition plus ou moins longue au soleil.
  2. 2
    Fragmentation d’une roche par la chaleur du jour.
  3. 3
    Dessèchement d’un tronc ou d’une branche exposé à la lumière directe du soleil.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how coup de soleil appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Nous ne sommes pas restés très longtemps à la plage hier, nous ne voulions pas attraper de coup de soleil.
  2. Rougon mourut presque subitement, quinze mois après son mariage, d’un coup de soleil qu’il reçut, une après-midi, en sarclant un plant de carottes.

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

How do you spell "coup de soleil"?
"coup de soleil" is spelled C-O-U-P- -D-E- -S-O-L-E-I-L. The IPA pronunciation is \ku d(ə) sɔ.lɛj\.
What does "coup de soleil" mean?
As a noun, "coup de soleil" means: Brûlure de la peau provoquée par une exposition plus ou moins longue au soleil.
How do you pronounce "coup de soleil"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "coup de soleil" is \ku d(ə) sɔ.lɛj\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "coup de soleil" come from?
"coup de soleil" 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.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list