dernier

\dɛʁ.nje\

/\dɛʁ.nje\/ adj

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

The verdict

“dernier” has 10 generated spelling variants in the French index at frequency #279. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#279
frequency rank, French
5,307
“D” headwords
10
tracked misspellings
16
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Dans un ensemble trié, l’élément qui arrive après tous les autres.

Corpus desk

Index FR-dernier · dernier · French

dernier · rank #279 · 10 variants · 16 confusables

  • FREQ-CORE #279
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 16 pairs
  • VAR-MID 10 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,307
  • PHOTO-FINISH choses

Nearest frequency peer: choses (-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 “dernier”

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

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “dernier” 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).

dernier vs dévier
57% similar
dernier vs dérober
57% similar
dernier vs déroger
57% similar

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

Key facts for dernier
PropertyValue
Headworddernier
LanguageFrench
Part of speechAdjective
IPA\dɛʁ.nje\
Letters7
Frequency rank#279
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs16
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Où “dernier” se place dans la fréquence du français

La fréquence va de la poignée de mots du quotidien (gauche) à la longue queue presque jamais vue (droite).dernierse place ici:

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

L'axe est logarithmique: chaque tic marque environ dix fois moins de fréquence. Dans la même bande de rareté figurent « choses » (#278), « enfin » (#280), « font » (#281). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 10 spelling variants around dernier (IPA \dɛʁ.nje\), anadjective. Corpus frequency is #279 among 5,307 “D” headwords. Wiktionary lists 7 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for dernier, with forms such as "ddernier", "denrier", and "deriner". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 16 confusable-pair relationships, "dévier", "dérober", "déroger", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct French form is dernier, spelled D-E-R-N-I-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    Dans un ensemble trié, l’élément qui arrive après tous les autres.
  2. 2
    Ultime, qui est après tous les autres, ou après lequel il n’y en a pas d’autre.
  3. 3
    Le plus récent.
  4. 4
    De la dernière période.
  5. 5
    Extrême en son genre, en bien ou en mal.
  6. 6
    Le plus vil, le plus méprisable.
  7. 7
    Le moins souhaitable, ce qu’il faut le plus éviter.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Le 31 décembre est le dernier jour de l’année.
  2. Le dernier né.

This word in other languages

last(English)último(Español)letzte(Deutsch)último(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • ddernier
  • denrier
  • deriner
  • derneir
  • dernierr
  • dernire
  • dernnier
  • derrnier
  • drenier
  • edrnier

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of dernier - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

ddernier1denrier2deriner2derneir2dernierr1dernire2dernnier1derrnier1
Edit distance from "dernier"

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 "dernier"?
"dernier" is spelled D-E-R-N-I-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is \dɛʁ.nje\.
What does "dernier" mean?
As an adjective, "dernier" means: Dans un ensemble trié, l’élément qui arrive après tous les autres.
What words are commonly confused with "dernier"?
"dernier" is commonly confused with "dévier", "dérober", "déroger". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "dernier"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "dernier" is \dɛʁ.nje\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "dernier" come from?
"dernier" 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.

Similar French words by spelling shape

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

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked French headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

surtout#276souvent#269pouvoir#257rapport#304

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (10 here; floor ≥5).

société10 variantspeuvent10 variantstrouver10 variantsdemande10 variants

What to do next

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

  • "dernier" maps to 16 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "dévier". View pair
  • 10 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #279 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