ficelle

\fi.sɛl\

/\fi.sɛl\/ noun

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

The verdict

“ficelle” has 8 generated spelling variants in the French index at frequency #20,722. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#20,722
frequency rank, French
3,276
“F” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
5
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Petite corde dont on se sert ordinairement pour lier des paquets.

Corpus desk

Index FR-ficelle · ficelle · French

ficelle · rank #20,722 · 8 variants · 5 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #20,722
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-MID 5 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,276
  • PHOTO-FINISH Favre

Nearest frequency peer: Favre (-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.

Pairs de rang près de l'aimant d'erreurs « ficelle »

Même bande de rareté: utile si une faute tombe sur un lemme voisin

corpus weight

What this shows « ficelle » siège parmi ces pairs FrequencyWords; la profondeur des fautes est suivie à part dans le graphique d'édition.

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).

ficelle vs fille
71% similar
ficelle vs fidèle
57% similar
ficelle vs ficelles
88% similar

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

Key facts for ficelle
PropertyValue
Headwordficelle
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\fi.sɛl\
Letters7
Frequency rank#20,722
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs5
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Fréquence de l'aimant d'erreurs « ficelle »

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

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

L'échelle est logarithmique (chaque tic ≈ 10× plus rare). Dans la même bande de rareté figurent « Favre » (#20,721), « fiesta » (#20,723), « fanatique » (#20,720). Parmi 3,276 lemmes en « F », « ficelle » est au #20,722. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around ficelle (IPA \fi.sɛl\), anoun. Corpus frequency is #20,722 among 3,276 “F” headwords. Wiktionary lists 10 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for ficelle, with forms such as "fcielle", "fficelle", and "ficcelle". 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 5 confusable-pair relationships, "fille", "fidèle", "ficelles", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

No documented word history exists for this headword, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct French form is ficelle, spelled F-I-C-E-L-L-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Petite corde dont on se sert ordinairement pour lier des paquets.
  2. 2
    Fil qui sert à la manipulation des marionnettes.
  3. 3
    Tour de main, truc de métier, astuce.
  4. 4
    Ruse, tromperie, artifice grossier.
  5. 5
    Baguette de pain très fine.
  6. 6
    Caténaire.
  7. 7
    Funiculaire.
  8. 8
    Tir réussi à l’issue duquel le ballon entre dans le filet sans toucher ni le cerceau ni le panneau.
  9. 9
    Galon d’officier.
  10. 10
    Crêpe salée au jambon, champignon et fromage.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Au milieu des livres, j’ai découvert ce livre d’images. Il était enveloppé de cellophane et entouré d’une ficelle dorée.
  2. Le plus ennuyeux pour les agriculteurs fut sans aucun doute le défaut d’essence et de ficelle pour les lieuses. On voyait ressortir les anciens matériels mis au rebut comme les javeleuses et les batteuses à tripot.

Synonyms

cordefiltir à la ficellesouiche

This word in other languages

string(English)cuerda(Español)Schnur(Deutsch)cordão(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • fcielle
  • fficelle
  • ficcelle
  • ficele
  • ficelel
  • ficlele
  • fieclle
  • ifcelle

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of ficelle - 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.

fcielle2fficelle1ficcelle1ficele1ficelel2ficlele2fieclle2ifcelle2
Edit distance from "ficelle"

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 "ficelle"?
"ficelle" is spelled F-I-C-E-L-L-E. The IPA pronunciation is \fi.sɛl\.
What does "ficelle" mean?
As a noun, "ficelle" means: Petite corde dont on se sert ordinairement pour lier des paquets.
What words are commonly confused with "ficelle"?
"ficelle" is commonly confused with "fille", "fidèle", "ficelles". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "ficelle"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "ficelle" is \fi.sɛl\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "ficelle" come from?
"ficelle" is a French word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
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 "ficelle", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

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

fourche#20,730frontal#20,732frégate#20,733doutent#20,700

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

fiesta8 variantsfalcon8 variantscerfs8 variantsMossoul8 variants

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list