lésiner

\le.zi.ne\

/\le.zi.ne\/ verb

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

The verdict

“lésiner” is uncommon French (frequency #88,856 among 128,088 “L” headwords), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#88,856
frequency rank, French
128,088
“L” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Agir avec lésinerie ; économiser à l’extrême.

Key facts for lésiner
PropertyValue
Headwordlésiner
LanguageFrench
Part of speechVerb
IPA\le.zi.ne\
Letters7
Frequency rank#88,856
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “lésiner” 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). lésiner lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

lésiner is uncommon French at frequency #88,856 among 128,088 “L” headwords, classed as averb, transcribed \le.zi.ne\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for lésiner, a sign its spelling follows regular French conventions. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct French form is lésiner, spelled L-É-S-I-N-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    Agir avec lésinerie ; économiser à l’extrême.
  2. 2
    Faire preuve d’une retenue excessive ; manquer de zèle lors de l’accomplissement d’une tâche quelconque.

Synonyms

compteréconomisermégoterrapiater

This word in other languages

skimp(English)escatimar(Español)geizen(Deutsch)

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 "lésiner"?
"lésiner" is spelled L-É-S-I-N-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is \le.zi.ne\.
What does "lésiner" mean?
As a verb, "lésiner" means: Agir avec lésinerie ; économiser à l’extrême.
How do you pronounce "lésiner"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "lésiner" is \le.zi.ne\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "lésiner" come from?
"lésiner" 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 “lésiner”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is L-É-S-I-N-E-R - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \le.zi.ne\ (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

Other uncommon French words near this rank

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