fath

\ˈfæð.əm\

/\ˈfæð.əm\/ symbol

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

The verdict

“fath” is uncommon French (frequency #73,161 among 137,178 “F” headwords), classed as a symbol. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#73,161
frequency rank, French
137,178
“F” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Symbole du fathom (la brasse en français), unité de mesure de profondeur hydrographique.

Key facts for fath
PropertyValue
Headwordfath
LanguageFrench
Part of speechSymbol
IPA\ˈfæð.əm\
Letters4
Frequency rank#73,161
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “fath” sits in French frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). fath lands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

fath is uncommon French at frequency #73,161 among 137,178 “F” headwords, classed as asymbol, transcribed \ˈfæð.əm\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Symbole du fathom (la brasse en français), unité de mesure de profondeur hydrographique.".

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for fath, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct French form is fath, spelled F-A-T-H.

Definition

  1. 1
    Symbole du fathom (la brasse en français), unité de mesure de profondeur hydrographique.

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 "fath"?
"fath" is spelled F-A-T-H. The IPA pronunciation is \ˈfæð.əm\.
What does "fath" mean?
As a symbol, "fath" means: Symbole du fathom (la brasse en français), unité de mesure de profondeur hydrographique.
How do you pronounce "fath"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "fath" is \ˈfæð.əm\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "fath" come from?
"fath" 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 “fath”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is F-A-T-H - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \ˈfæð.əm\ (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

Other uncommon French words near this rank

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