matière grise
\ma.tjɛʁ ɡʁiz\
The verdict
“matière grise” is outside the top-ranked French vocabulary, used as a noun - the kind of word writers most often double-check.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency French
- 13
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Partie du système nerveux contenant les corps des neurones, par opposition à la matière blanche qui ne contient que leurs axones.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | matière grise |
| Language | French |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | \ma.tjɛʁ ɡʁiz\ |
| Letters | 13 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “matière grise” sits in French frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The French entry for matière grise is 13 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \ma.tjɛʁ ɡʁiz\. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "Partie du système nerveux contenant les corps des neurones, par opposition à la matière blanche qui ne contient que leurs axones.".
No generated misspelling entries exist for matière grise in our index, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. Our dataset records no confusable match here, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
This entry carries no recorded etymology, so its spelling pattern is best understood through pronunciation rather than a traceable origin. The correct French form is matière grise, spelled M-A-T-I-È-R-E- -G-R-I-S-E.
Definition
- 1Partie du système nerveux contenant les corps des neurones, par opposition à la matière blanche qui ne contient que leurs axones.
Synonyms
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 “matière grise”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct French spelling is M-A-T-I-È-R-E- -G-R-I-S-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as \ma.tjɛʁ ɡʁiz\ (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.