crawl

\kʁɔl\

/\kʁɔl\/ noun

The verdict

“crawl” is an uncommon French word, ranked #53,235 in French word frequency and used as a noun.

#53,235
frequency rank, French
5
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Nage en position ventrale associant des battements de jambes dans le sens vertical et des mouvements de bras circulaires, verticaux et alternés dans le sens de la nage.

Key facts for crawl
PropertyValue
Headwordcrawl
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\kʁɔl\
Letters5
Frequency rank#53,235
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “crawl” 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). crawl 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 crawl is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \kʁɔl\. Corpus data places it at rank #53,235 in overall French word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for crawl, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct French form is crawl, spelled C-R-A-W-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    Nage en position ventrale associant des battements de jambes dans le sens vertical et des mouvements de bras circulaires, verticaux et alternés dans le sens de la nage.
  2. 2
    Message ou générique défilant verticalement ou horizontalement sur fond neutre ou en superposition d’images statiques ou animées.

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); 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 "crawl"?
"crawl" is spelled C-R-A-W-L. The IPA pronunciation is \kʁɔl\.
What does "crawl" mean?
As a noun, "crawl" means: Nage en position ventrale associant des battements de jambes dans le sens vertical et des mouvements de bras circulaires, verticaux et alternés dans le sens de la nage.
How do you pronounce "crawl"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "crawl" is \kʁɔl\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "crawl" come from?
"crawl" 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 “crawl”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is C-R-A-W-L - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \kʁɔl\ (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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list