minus

\mi.nys\

/\mi.nys\/ noun

The verdict

“minus” has 7 generated spelling variants in the French index at frequency #32,073. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#32,073
frequency rank, French
5,038
“M” headwords
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Individu aux capacités intellectuelles limitées.

Corpus desk

Index FR-minus · minus · French

minus · rank #32,073 · 7 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-MID #32,073
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 7 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,038
  • PHOTO-FINISH minibus

Nearest frequency peer: minibus (-1 rank slots)

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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “minus”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “minus” sits against the nearest ranked French headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

minus vs mis
60% similar
minus vs mus
60% similar
minus vs miss
60% similar

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

Key facts for minus
PropertyValue
Headwordminus
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\mi.nys\
Letters5
Frequency rank#32,073
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “minus” sits in French frequency

Word frequency stretches from the small set of words we reach for constantly (left) out to the long tail barely used once in a while (right).minus 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 7 spelling variants around minus (IPA \mi.nys\), anoun. Corpus frequency is #32,073 among 5,038 “M” headwords. Wiktionary lists 2 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for minus, with forms such as "imnus", "minnus", and "minsu". 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. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "mis", "mus", "miss", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct French form is minus, spelled M-I-N-U-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Individu aux capacités intellectuelles limitées.
  2. 2
    Individu minable, en particulier sans force physique, lâche.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Mais qu'est-ce qu'il me veut ce minus ?
  2. Ce minus vient juste d’emménager dans le quartier et il se permet de me faire la leçon.

Synonyms

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • imnus
  • minnus
  • minsu
  • minuss
  • miuns
  • mminus
  • mnius

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of minus - 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.

imnus2minnus1minsu2minuss1miuns2mminus1mnius2
Edit distance from "minus"

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.

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 September 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "minus"?
"minus" is spelled M-I-N-U-S. The IPA pronunciation is \mi.nys\.
What does "minus" mean?
As a noun, "minus" means: Individu aux capacités intellectuelles limitées.
What words are commonly confused with "minus"?
"minus" is commonly confused with "mis", "mus", "miss". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "minus"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "minus" is \mi.nys\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "minus" come from?
"minus" 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.

Similar French words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "minus", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked French headwords with 5 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (7 here; floor ≥5).

What to do next

You've looked up "minus". Here's where to go from here.

  • "minus" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "mis". View pair
  • 7 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #32,073 among French headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more French words in the "M" letter cohort. M–Z browse

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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