cymbale

\sɛ̃.bal\

/\sɛ̃.bal\/ noun

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

The verdict

“cymbale” is uncommon French (frequency #88,511 among 257,141 “C” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#88,511
frequency rank, French
257,141
“C” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Instrument de musique de l’Antiquité, fait de deux moitiés de globe en airain.

Key facts for cymbale
PropertyValue
Headwordcymbale
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\sɛ̃.bal\
Letters7
Frequency rank#88,511
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “cymbale” 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). cymbale lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

cymbale is uncommon French at frequency #88,511 among 257,141 “C” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed \sɛ̃.bal\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

cymbale doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct French form is cymbale, spelled C-Y-M-B-A-L-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Instrument de musique de l’Antiquité, fait de deux moitiés de globe en airain.
  2. 2
    Instrument de musique consistant en deux disques ou plateaux de cuivre que l’on frappe en mesure l’un contre l’autre.

This word in other languages

cymbal(English)Becken(Deutsch)

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 "cymbale"?
"cymbale" is spelled C-Y-M-B-A-L-E. The IPA pronunciation is \sɛ̃.bal\.
What does "cymbale" mean?
As a noun, "cymbale" means: Instrument de musique de l’Antiquité, fait de deux moitiés de globe en airain.
How do you pronounce "cymbale"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "cymbale" is \sɛ̃.bal\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "cymbale" come from?
"cymbale" 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 “cymbale”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is C-Y-M-B-A-L-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \sɛ̃.bal\ (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

Other uncommon French words near this rank

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