étourneau

\e.tuʁ.no\

/\e.tuʁ.no\/ noun

The verdict

“étourneau” is outside the top-ranked French vocabulary, used as a noun - the kind of word writers most often double-check.

Unranked
below top-frequency French
9
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Espèce de petit oiseau passereau du genre Sturnus, au bec allongé et pointu et à petite queue.

Key facts for étourneau
PropertyValue
Headwordétourneau
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\e.tuʁ.no\
Letters9
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “étourneau” sits in French frequency

étourneau 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.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The French entry for étourneau is 9 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \e.tuʁ.no\. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

étourneau has no tracked misspelling variants, a sign its spelling follows regular French conventions. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Wiktionary doesn't record an etymology for this headword, 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 étourneau, spelled É-T-O-U-R-N-E-A-U.

Definition

  1. 1
    Espèce de petit oiseau passereau du genre Sturnus, au bec allongé et pointu et à petite queue.
  2. 2
    Jeune homme léger et inconsidéré.
  3. 3
    Cheval qui a le poil gris jaunâtre.

This word in other languages

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.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "étourneau"?
"étourneau" is spelled É-T-O-U-R-N-E-A-U. The IPA pronunciation is \e.tuʁ.no\.
What does "étourneau" mean?
As a noun, "étourneau" means: Espèce de petit oiseau passereau du genre Sturnus, au bec allongé et pointu et à petite queue.
How do you pronounce "étourneau"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "étourneau" is \e.tuʁ.no\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "étourneau" come from?
"étourneau" 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.

Using “étourneau”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is É-T-O-U-R-N-E-A-U - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \e.tuʁ.no\ (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
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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list