lieu commun
\ljø kɔ.mœ̃\
The verdict
“lieu commun” is uncommon French (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency French
- 11
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Source générale communément admise d’où un orateur peut tirer ses arguments.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | lieu commun |
| Language | French |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | \ljø kɔ.mœ̃\ |
| Letters | 11 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “lieu commun” sits in French frequency
Rare enough to double-check
lieu commun is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed \ljø kɔ.mœ̃\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.
We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for lieu commun, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.
No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct French form is lieu commun, spelled L-I-E-U- -C-O-M-M-U-N.
Definition
- 1Source générale communément admise d’où un orateur peut tirer ses arguments.
- 2Réflexions générales qu’on développe à l’occasion de sujets particuliers.
- 3Idée usée ou rebattue.
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
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Using “lieu commun”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct French spelling is L-I-E-U- -C-O-M-M-U-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as \ljø kɔ.mœ̃\ (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.