gale

\ɡal\

/\ɡal\/ noun

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

The verdict

“gale” is a moderately-common French word, ranked #20,452 in French word frequency and used as a noun.

#20,452
frequency rank, French
4
letters
4
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Maladie parasitaire causée par le sarcopte, cutanée et contagieuse de l’homme et des animaux, caractérisée chez l’homme par une éruption de vésicules transparentes à leur sommet, qui se développent...

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

gale vs gl
50% similar
gale vs gré
25% similar
gale vs gel
50% similar

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

Key facts for gale
PropertyValue
Headwordgale
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\ɡal\
Letters4
Frequency rank#20,452
Misspellings tracked4
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “gale” 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). gale lands here:

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

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

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The French entry for gale is 4 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \ɡal\. Corpus data places it at rank #20,452 in overall French word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 4 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 4 likely wrong-spelling variants for gale, with forms such as "agle", "gael", and "ggale". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "gl", "gré", "gel", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct French form is gale, spelled G-A-L-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Maladie parasitaire causée par le sarcopte, cutanée et contagieuse de l’homme et des animaux, caractérisée chez l’homme par une éruption de vésicules transparentes à leur sommet, qui se développent principalement au pli des articulations, et qui sont toujours accompagnées de démangeaison.
  2. 2
    Croûte qui se forme sur une blessure, une plaie en voie de guérison.
  3. 3
    Teigne, personne méchante et nocive.
  4. 4
    Maladie des végétaux, caractérisée par des rugosités sur l’écorce des branches, sur les feuilles et sur les fruits.

Synonyms

acariose psoriquepsorescabiose

This word in other languages

scabies(English)sarna(Español)Krätze(Deutsch)sarna(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: agle,gael,ggale,glae

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of gale - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

agle2gael2ggale1glae2
Edit distance from "gale"

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 "gale"?
"gale" is spelled G-A-L-E. The IPA pronunciation is \ɡal\.
What does "gale" mean?
As a noun, "gale" means: Maladie parasitaire causée par le sarcopte, cutanée et contagieuse de l’homme et des animaux, caractérisée chez l’homme par une éruption de vésicules transparentes à leur sommet, qui se développent...
What words are commonly confused with "gale"?
"gale" is commonly confused with "gl", "gré", "gel". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "gale"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "gale" is \ɡal\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "gale" come from?
"gale" is a French word. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for this and other words across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German on PlainSpell.
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 “gale”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is G-A-L-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \ɡal\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “gl” - see the side-by-side comparison. gale vs gl
  • 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