hydro-

\i.dʁo\

/\i.dʁo\/ prefix

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

The verdict

“hydro-” is uncommon French (outside the top frequency list), classed as a prefix. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency French
6
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Qui se rapporte à l’eau.

Key facts for hydro-
PropertyValue
Headwordhydro-
LanguageFrench
Part of speechPrefix
IPA\i.dʁo\
Letters6
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “hydro-” sits in French frequency

hydro- 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.

Rare enough to double-check

hydro- is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as aprefix, transcribed \i.dʁo\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

No generated misspelling entries exist for hydro- in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, so its spelling is easiest to reason about phoneme by phoneme, absent a documented history. The correct French form is hydro-, spelled H-Y-D-R-O--.

Definition

  1. 1
    Qui se rapporte à l’eau.
  2. 2
    Qui se rapporte à un liquide quelconque.
  3. 3
    Qui se rapporte à l’hydrogène.

This word in other languages

hydro-(English)

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 "hydro-"?
"hydro-" is spelled H-Y-D-R-O--. The IPA pronunciation is \i.dʁo\.
What does "hydro-" mean?
As a prefix, "hydro-" means: Qui se rapporte à l’eau.
How do you pronounce "hydro-"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "hydro-" is \i.dʁo\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "hydro-" come from?
"hydro-" 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 “hydro-”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is H-Y-D-R-O-- - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \i.dʁo\ (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