définition
\de.fi.ni.sjɔ̃\
The verdict
“définition” is a regularly-used French word, ranked #1,996 in French word frequency and used as a noun.
- #1,996
- frequency rank, French
- 10
- letters
- 15
- tracked misspellings
- 4
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Formule par laquelle on définit une chose ; énoncé des attributs, des qualités qui la distinguent.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | définition |
| Language | French |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | \de.fi.ni.sjɔ̃\ |
| Letters | 10 |
| Frequency rank | #1,996 |
| Misspellings tracked | 15 |
| Confusable pairs | 4 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “définition” sits in French frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The French entry for définition is 10 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \de.fi.ni.sjɔ̃\. Corpus data places it at rank #1,996 in overall French word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 4 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 15 likely wrong-spelling variants for définition, with forms such as "ddéfinition", "definition", and "dféinition". 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 4 confusable-pair relationships, "définitive", "définitions", "définitif", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.
No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so spelling patterns must be inferred from the word's phoneme-to-grapheme mapping rather than from a documented borrowing chain. The correct French form is définition, spelled D-É-F-I-N-I-T-I-O-N.
Definition
- 1Formule par laquelle on définit une chose ; énoncé des attributs, des qualités qui la distinguent.
- 2Sens qu’on attribue aux mots et qui peut être arbitraire.
- 3Décision qui précise les affirmations théologiques et règle la foi.
- 4Nombre de pixels d’une image matricielle, produite par un dispositif affichant des images (écrans, imprimantes…) ou en capturant (appareils photo, caméras, scanneurs…). Souvent exprimée sous la forme d’une multiplication L×H, où L est le nombre de pixels en largeur et H le nombre de pixels en hauteur, et dont les multiplicandes suivent généralement des ratios d’aspect standardisés, on la trouve aussi souvent exprimée sous la forme d’une approximation en mégapixels de cette multiplication.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: ddéfinition,definition,dféinition,déffinition,défiintion,définiiton,définitino,définitionn,définitoin,définittion,définnition,défintiion,défniition,déifnition,édfinition
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of définition - 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.
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 "définition"?
What does "définition" mean?
What words are commonly confused with "définition"?
How do you pronounce "définition"?
What language does "définition" come from?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “définition”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct French spelling is D-É-F-I-N-I-T-I-O-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as \de.fi.ni.sjɔ̃\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “définitive” - see the side-by-side comparison. définition vs définitive
- 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.