de travers

\də tʁa.vɛʁ\

/\də tʁa.vɛʁ\/ adj

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

The verdict

“de travers” is uncommon French (outside the top frequency list), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency French
10
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Qui dévie vers un côté.

Corpus desk

Index FR-de-travers · de travers · French

de travers · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "D" 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 de travers
PropertyValue
Headwordde travers
LanguageFrench
Part of speechAdjective
IPA\də tʁa.vɛʁ\
Letters10
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “de travers” sits in French frequency

de travers falls outside the top-100,000 ranked French words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

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

Rare enough to double-check

de travers is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anadjective, transcribed \də tʁa.vɛʁ\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for de travers, a sign its spelling follows regular French conventions. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

This entry carries no recorded etymology, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct French form is de travers, spelled D-E- -T-R-A-V-E-R-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Qui dévie vers un côté.
  2. 2
    Qui vient du côté.
  3. 3
    Pas en face, en exprimant de la désapprobation ou de l’incompréhension.

Synonyms

de biaisen biaisde travioleoblique

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of May 6, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "de travers"?
"de travers" is spelled D-E- -T-R-A-V-E-R-S. The IPA pronunciation is \də tʁa.vɛʁ\.
What does "de travers" mean?
As an adjective, "de travers" means: Qui dévie vers un côté.
How do you pronounce "de travers"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "de travers" is \də tʁa.vɛʁ\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "de travers" come from?
"de travers" is a French word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
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.
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