œil pour œil, dent pour dent

\œj pu.ʁ‿œj dɑ̃ puʁ dɑ̃\

/\œj pu.ʁ‿œj dɑ̃ puʁ dɑ̃\/ phrase

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

The verdict

“œil pour œil, dent pour dent” is outside the top-ranked French vocabulary, used as a phrase - the kind of word writers most often double-check.

Unranked
below top-frequency French
28
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Précepte de la peine du talion qui consiste à traiter un coupable de la même façon qu’il a traité ou voulu traiter les autres.

Key facts for œil pour œil, dent pour dent
PropertyValue
Headwordœil pour œil, dent pour dent
LanguageFrench
Part of speechPhrase
IPA\œj pu.ʁ‿œj dɑ̃ puʁ dɑ̃\
Letters28
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “œil pour œil, dent pour dent” sits in French frequency

œil pour œil, dent pour dent 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 œil pour œil, dent pour dent is 28 letters long, classified as a phrase, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \œj pu.ʁ‿œj dɑ̃ puʁ dɑ̃\. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "Précepte de la peine du talion qui consiste à traiter un coupable de la même façon qu’il a traité ou voulu traiter les autres.".

No misspelling variants are generated for œil pour œil, dent pour dent in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

No documented word history exists for this headword, so its spelling pattern is best understood through pronunciation rather than a traceable origin. The correct French form is œil pour œil, dent pour dent, spelled Œ-I-L- -P-O-U-R- -Œ-I-L-,- -D-E-N-T- -P-O-U-R- -D-E-N-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    Précepte de la peine du talion qui consiste à traiter un coupable de la même façon qu’il a traité ou voulu traiter les autres.

Synonyms

œil pour œil

Antonyms

tendre l’autre joue

This word in other languages

an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth(English)Auge um Auge, Zahn um Zahn(Deutsch)olho por olho, dente por dente(Português)

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 "œil pour œil, dent pour dent"?
"œil pour œil, dent pour dent" is spelled Œ-I-L- -P-O-U-R- -Œ-I-L-,- -D-E-N-T- -P-O-U-R- -D-E-N-T. The IPA pronunciation is \œj pu.ʁ‿œj dɑ̃ puʁ dɑ̃\.
What does "œil pour œil, dent pour dent" mean?
As a phrase, "œil pour œil, dent pour dent" means: Précepte de la peine du talion qui consiste à traiter un coupable de la même façon qu’il a traité ou voulu traiter les autres.
How do you pronounce "œil pour œil, dent pour dent"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "œil pour œil, dent pour dent" is \œj pu.ʁ‿œj dɑ̃ puʁ dɑ̃\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "œil pour œil, dent pour dent" come from?
"œil pour œil, dent pour dent" 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 “œil pour œil, dent pour dent”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is Œ-I-L- -P-O-U-R- -Œ-I-L-,- -D-E-N-T- -P-O-U-R- -D-E-N-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \œj pu.ʁ‿œj dɑ̃ puʁ dɑ̃\ (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