malicieux
\ma.li.sjø\
The verdict
“malicieux” is a moderately-common French word, ranked #31,591 in French word frequency and used as an adjective.
- #31,591
- frequency rank, French
- 9
- letters
- 12
- tracked misspellings
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Qui a de la malice, qui est porté à nuire, à mal faire.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | malicieux |
| Language | French |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | \ma.li.sjø\ |
| Letters | 9 |
| Frequency rank | #31,591 |
| Misspellings tracked | 12 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “malicieux” sits in French frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The French entry for malicieux is 9 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \ma.li.sjø\. Corpus data places it at rank #31,591 in overall French word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 4 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 12 likely wrong-spelling variants for malicieux, with forms such as "amlicieux", "mailcieux", and "malciieux". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.
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 malicieux, spelled M-A-L-I-C-I-E-U-X.
Definition
- 1Qui a de la malice, qui est porté à nuire, à mal faire.
- 2Qui est porté à la plaisanterie.
- 3Qui dénote un esprit espiègle.
- 4Qualifie cheval qui rue de côté, qui semble user d’adresse contre celui qui le monte ou qui l’approche.
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: amlicieux,mailcieux,malciieux,maliccieux,maliceiux,malicieuxx,maliciexu,maliciuex,maliiceux,mallicieux,mlaicieux,mmalicieux
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of malicieux - 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.
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
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Using “malicieux”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct French spelling is M-A-L-I-C-I-E-U-X - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as \ma.li.sjø\ (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.