langue de bois
\lɑ̃ɡ də bwa\
The verdict
“langue de bois” is uncommon French (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency French
- 14
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Artifice rhétorique, trope (ou figure) s'étendant à tout un énoncé, et qui vise à travestir la réalité, notamment au moyen d’euphémismes.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | langue de bois |
| Language | French |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | \lɑ̃ɡ də bwa\ |
| Letters | 14 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “langue de bois” sits in French frequency
Rare enough to double-check
langue de bois is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed \lɑ̃ɡ də bwa\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Artifice rhétorique, trope (ou figure) s'étendant à tout un énoncé, et qui vise à travestir la réalité, notamment au moyen d’euphémismes.".
The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for langue de bois, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct French form is langue de bois, spelled L-A-N-G-U-E- -D-E- -B-O-I-S.
Definition
- 1Artifice rhétorique, trope (ou figure) s'étendant à tout un énoncé, et qui vise à travestir la réalité, notamment au moyen d’euphémismes.
Synonyms
Antonyms
This word in other languages
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 "langue de bois"?
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Using “langue de bois”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct French spelling is L-A-N-G-U-E- -D-E- -B-O-I-S - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as \lɑ̃ɡ də bwa\ (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.