joie maligne

\ʒwa ma.liɲ\

/\ʒwa ma.liɲ\/ noun

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

The verdict

“joie maligne” 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
12
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Sentiment malsain de joie éprouvé devant le malheur d’autrui.

Key facts for joie maligne
PropertyValue
Headwordjoie maligne
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\ʒwa ma.liɲ\
Letters12
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “joie maligne” sits in French frequency

joie maligne 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 joie maligne is 12 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \ʒwa ma.liɲ\. 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: "Sentiment malsain de joie éprouvé devant le malheur d’autrui.".

No generated misspelling entries exist for joie maligne in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct French form is joie maligne, spelled J-O-I-E- -M-A-L-I-G-N-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Sentiment malsain de joie éprouvé devant le malheur d’autrui.

Synonyms

schadenfreude

Antonyms

compassioncompersion

This word in other languages

schadenfreude(English)Schadenfreude(Deutsch)

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 "joie maligne"?
"joie maligne" is spelled J-O-I-E- -M-A-L-I-G-N-E. The IPA pronunciation is \ʒwa ma.liɲ\.
What does "joie maligne" mean?
As a noun, "joie maligne" means: Sentiment malsain de joie éprouvé devant le malheur d’autrui.
How do you pronounce "joie maligne"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "joie maligne" is \ʒwa ma.liɲ\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "joie maligne" come from?
"joie maligne" 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 “joie maligne”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is J-O-I-E- -M-A-L-I-G-N-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \ʒwa ma.liɲ\ (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