girl

\ɡœʁl\

/\ɡœʁl\/ noun

The verdict

“girl” is a regularly-used French word, ranked #4,491 in French word frequency and used as a noun.

#4,491
frequency rank, French
4
letters
5
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Jeune danseuse de revue.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

girl vs GR
0% similar
girl vs gl
50% similar
girl vs gré
50% similar

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

Key facts for girl
PropertyValue
Headwordgirl
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\ɡœʁl\
Letters4
Frequency rank#4,491
Misspellings tracked5
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “girl” 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). girl 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 girl is 4 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \ɡœʁl\. Corpus data places it at rank #4,491 in overall French word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 5 likely wrong-spelling variants for girl, with forms such as "ggirl", "gilr", and "girll". 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, "GR", "gl", "gré", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct French form is girl, spelled G-I-R-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    Jeune danseuse de revue.
  2. 2
    Nom donné aux actrices des débuts du cinéma, celles-ci n’étant pas créditées au générique.

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: ggirl,gilr,girll,girrl,igrl

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of girl - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

ggirl1gilr2girll1girrl1igrl2
Edit distance from "girl"

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 "girl"?
"girl" is spelled G-I-R-L. The IPA pronunciation is \ɡœʁl\.
What does "girl" mean?
As a noun, "girl" means: Jeune danseuse de revue.
What words are commonly confused with "girl"?
"girl" is commonly confused with "GR", "gl", "gré". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "girl"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "girl" is \ɡœʁl\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "girl" come from?
"girl" 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.

Using “girl”

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

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