maintenant

\mɛ̃t.nɑ̃\

/\mɛ̃t.nɑ̃\/ adv

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

The verdict

“maintenant” has 15 generated spelling variants in the French index at frequency #234. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#234
frequency rank, French
202,672
“M” headwords
15
tracked misspellings
3
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - À l’instant présent ou dans la période de temps actuelle plus ou moins étendue.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

maintenant vs Maintenon
70% similar
maintenant vs maintenait
90% similar
maintenant vs maintenance
82% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for maintenant
PropertyValue
Headwordmaintenant
LanguageFrench
Part of speechAdverb
IPA\mɛ̃t.nɑ̃\
Letters10
Frequency rank#234
Misspellings tracked15
Confusable pairs3
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “maintenant” 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). maintenant lands here:

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

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

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 15 spelling variants around maintenant (IPA \mɛ̃t.nɑ̃\), anadverb. Corpus frequency is #234 among 202,672 “M” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 15 likely wrong-spelling variants for maintenant, with forms such as "amintenant", "mainetnant", and "mainntenant". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 3 confusable-pair relationships, "Maintenon", "maintenait", "maintenance", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

This entry carries no recorded etymology, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct French form is maintenant, spelled M-A-I-N-T-E-N-A-N-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    À l’instant présent ou dans la période de temps actuelle plus ou moins étendue.
  2. 2
    À partir de cet instant ; désormais ; dorénavant ^([1]).
  3. 3
    Néanmoins, quoiqu’il en soit, par contre.

Synonyms

actuellementà présentà cette heureaujourd’huiau temps où nous sommesororesprésentementméshui

This word in other languages

now(English)ahora(Español)jetzt(Deutsch)agora(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • amintenant
  • mainetnant
  • mainntenant
  • mainteannt
  • maintenannt
  • maintenantt
  • maintenatn
  • maintennant
  • maintennat
  • maintneant
  • mainttenant
  • maitnenant
  • manitenant
  • miantenant
  • mmaintenant

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of maintenant - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

amintenant2mainetnant2mainntenant1mainteannt2maintenannt1maintenantt1maintenatn2maintennant1
Edit distance from "maintenant"

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 "maintenant"?
"maintenant" is spelled M-A-I-N-T-E-N-A-N-T. The IPA pronunciation is \mɛ̃t.nɑ̃\.
What does "maintenant" mean?
As an adverb, "maintenant" means: À l’instant présent ou dans la période de temps actuelle plus ou moins étendue.
What words are commonly confused with "maintenant"?
"maintenant" is commonly confused with "Maintenon", "maintenait", "maintenance". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "maintenant"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "maintenant" is \mɛ̃t.nɑ̃\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "maintenant" come from?
"maintenant" 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 “maintenant”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is M-A-I-N-T-E-N-A-N-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \mɛ̃t.nɑ̃\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “Maintenon” - see the side-by-side comparison. maintenant vs Maintenon
  • Browse more French words and confusable pairs in the same reference. French words

Same frequency band

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