fair-play

\fɛʁ.plɛ\

/\fɛʁ.plɛ\/ noun

The verdict

“fair-play” is uncommon French (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency French
9
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Conduite respectueuse des règles et de l’adversaire.

Corpus desk

Index FR-fair-play · fair-play · French

fair-play · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "F" 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 fair-play
PropertyValue
Headwordfair-play
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\fɛʁ.plɛ\
Letters9
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Longue queue: rang de « fair-play » en français

fair-playsiège au-delà des 100.000 formes les plus fréquentes du français, dans la traîne du lexique spécialisé ou peu usité.

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

Rare enough to double-check

fair-play is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed \fɛʁ.plɛ\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Conduite respectueuse des règles et de l’adversaire.".

Zero misspellings are on record for fair-play in our index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct French form is fair-play, spelled F-A-I-R---P-L-A-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    Conduite respectueuse des règles et de l’adversaire.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Le chartisme aime assez le fair play en Angleterre, ou sera toujours prêt à lui rendre sa partie.
  2. — Maintenant, ajouta-t-il, tâchez d’être un peu « fair play » et n’oubliez pas qu’il convient toujours de prendre le parti de ses ennemis, à condition qu’ils perdent.

Synonyms

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 "fair-play"?
"fair-play" is spelled F-A-I-R---P-L-A-Y. The IPA pronunciation is \fɛʁ.plɛ\.
What does "fair-play" mean?
As a noun, "fair-play" means: Conduite respectueuse des règles et de l’adversaire.
How do you pronounce "fair-play"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "fair-play" is \fɛʁ.plɛ\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "fair-play" come from?
"fair-play" 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.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list