défiance

\de.fjɑ̃s\

/\de.fjɑ̃s\/ noun

The verdict

“défiance” has 12 generated spelling variants in the French index at frequency #13,578. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#13,578
frequency rank, French
5,307
“D” headwords
12
tracked misspellings
5
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Sentiment de celui qui se défie de quelqu’un, de quelque chose, ou de lui-même.

Corpus desk

Index FR-defiance · défiance · French

défiance · rank #13,578 · 12 variants · 5 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #13,578
  • LEN-LONG 8 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 5 pairs
  • VAR-MID 12 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,307
  • PHOTO-FINISH défends

Nearest frequency peer: défends (-1 rank slots)

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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “défiance”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “défiance” sits against the nearest ranked French headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

défiance vs définie
75% similar
défiance vs défoncé
63% similar
défiance vs devance
63% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for défiance
PropertyValue
Headworddéfiance
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\de.fjɑ̃s\
Letters8
Frequency rank#13,578
Misspellings tracked12
Confusable pairs5
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Où “défiance” se place dans la fréquence du français

De gauche à droite: le peu qui porte la parole quotidienne, puis la longue queue quasi invisible.défiancese place ici:

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

Les tics avancent en logarithme; chacun est de l'ordre de dix fois plus rare. Dans la même bande de rareté figurent « défends » (#13,577), « défavorable » (#13,576), « dépistage » (#13,580). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 12 spelling variants around défiance (IPA \de.fjɑ̃s\), anoun. Corpus frequency is #13,578 among 5,307 “D” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for défiance, with forms such as "ddéfiance", "defiance", and "dféiance". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 5 confusable-pair relationships, "définie", "défoncé", "devance", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct French form is défiance, spelled D-É-F-I-A-N-C-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Sentiment de celui qui se défie de quelqu’un, de quelque chose, ou de lui-même.
  2. 2
    Défi, action de défier.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Las enfin de voir mes instances inutiles, je fis servir ; alors ils se décidèrent à accoster, bientôt même ils montèrent à bord sans défiance.
  2. Depuis le commencement de 1820, Cadiz est, aux yeux du gouvernement d’Espagne, en état de suspicion et de défiance.

Synonyms

Antonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ddéfiance
  • defiance
  • dféiance
  • défaince
  • déffiance
  • défiacne
  • défiancce
  • défianec
  • défiannce
  • définace
  • déifance
  • édfiance

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of défiance - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

ddéfiance1defiance1dféiance2défaince2déffiance1défiacne2défiancce1défianec2
Edit distance from "défiance"

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 "défiance"?
"défiance" is spelled D-É-F-I-A-N-C-E. The IPA pronunciation is \de.fjɑ̃s\.
What does "défiance" mean?
As a noun, "défiance" means: Sentiment de celui qui se défie de quelqu’un, de quelque chose, ou de lui-même.
What words are commonly confused with "défiance"?
"défiance" is commonly confused with "définie", "défoncé", "devance". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "défiance"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "défiance" is \de.fjɑ̃s\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "défiance" come from?
"défiance" is a French word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
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.

Similar French words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "défiance", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked French headwords with 8 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (12 here; floor ≥5).

What to do next

You've looked up "défiance". Here's where to go from here.

  • "défiance" maps to 5 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "définie". View pair
  • 12 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #13,578 among French headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more French words in the "D" letter cohort. D–Z browse

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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