mille-pattes

\mil.pat\

/\mil.pat\/ noun

The verdict

“mille-pattes” is uncommon French (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency French
12
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Nom d’un sous-embranchement d’arthropodes qui ont un très grand nombre de pattes.

Corpus desk

Index FR-mille-pattes · mille-pattes · French

mille-pattes · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 12 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "M" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for mille-pattes
PropertyValue
Headwordmille-pattes
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\mil.pat\
Letters12
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “mille-pattes” sits in French frequency

mille-pattes falls outside the top-100,000 ranked French words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

mille-pattes is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed \mil.pat\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for mille-pattes, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable French rules. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct French form is mille-pattes, spelled M-I-L-L-E---P-A-T-T-E-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Nom d’un sous-embranchement d’arthropodes qui ont un très grand nombre de pattes.
  2. 2
    Poids lourd, notamment semi-remorque.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how mille-pattes appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Il me tardait que ce fût fini. Je me faisais horreur de prolonger cette scène (comme quand on n’ose pas appuyer le talon sur le mille-pattes).
  2. Un serpent rim rock crowned snake (Tantilla oolitica) a été retrouvé mort avec un mille-pattes des Caraïbes dans la gueule.

Synonyms

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of May 6, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "mille-pattes"?
"mille-pattes" is spelled M-I-L-L-E---P-A-T-T-E-S. The IPA pronunciation is \mil.pat\.
What does "mille-pattes" mean?
As a noun, "mille-pattes" means: Nom d’un sous-embranchement d’arthropodes qui ont un très grand nombre de pattes.
How do you pronounce "mille-pattes"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "mille-pattes" is \mil.pat\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "mille-pattes" come from?
"mille-pattes" is a French word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
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.
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