force de frappe

\fɔʁs də fʁap\

/\fɔʁs də fʁap\/ noun

The verdict

“force de frappe” 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
15
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Capacité d’intervention militaire.

Key facts for force de frappe
PropertyValue
Headwordforce de frappe
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\fɔʁs də fʁap\
Letters15
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “force de frappe” sits in French frequency

force de frappe 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 force de frappe is 15 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \fɔʁs də fʁap\. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Zero misspellings are on record for force de frappe in our index, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

This entry carries no recorded etymology, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct French form is force de frappe, spelled F-O-R-C-E- -D-E- -F-R-A-P-P-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Capacité d’intervention militaire.
  2. 2
    Capacité de réaction, de financement.

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 "force de frappe"?
"force de frappe" is spelled F-O-R-C-E- -D-E- -F-R-A-P-P-E. The IPA pronunciation is \fɔʁs də fʁap\.
What does "force de frappe" mean?
As a noun, "force de frappe" means: Capacité d’intervention militaire.
How do you pronounce "force de frappe"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "force de frappe" is \fɔʁs də fʁap\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "force de frappe" come from?
"force de frappe" 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 “force de frappe”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is F-O-R-C-E- -D-E- -F-R-A-P-P-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \fɔʁs də fʁap\ (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