mirage

\mi.ʁaʒ\

/\mi.ʁaʒ\/ noun

The verdict

“mirage” is a moderately-common French word, ranked #17,482 in French word frequency and used as a noun.

#17,482
frequency rank, French
6
letters
8
tracked misspellings
13
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Phénomène dû à l’incurvation des rayons lumineux se réfléchissant sur les couches surchauffées de l’atmosphère voisines du sol et donnant souvent l’impression d’une réflexion sur une grande étendue...

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

mirage vs morale
67% similar
mirage vs mitigé
50% similar
mirage vs murale
67% similar

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

Key facts for mirage
PropertyValue
Headwordmirage
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\mi.ʁaʒ\
Letters6
Frequency rank#17,482
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs13
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “mirage” 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). mirage lands here:

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

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

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The French entry for mirage is 6 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \mi.ʁaʒ\. Corpus data places it at rank #17,482 in overall French word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for mirage, with forms such as "imrage", "miarge", and "miraeg". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 13 confusable-pair relationships, "morale", "mitigé", "murale", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

Wiktionary doesn't record an etymology for this headword, so its spelling pattern is best understood through pronunciation rather than a traceable origin. The correct French form is mirage, spelled M-I-R-A-G-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Phénomène dû à l’incurvation des rayons lumineux se réfléchissant sur les couches surchauffées de l’atmosphère voisines du sol et donnant souvent l’impression d’une réflexion sur une grande étendue d’eau.
  2. 2
    Illusion trompeuse.
  3. 3
    Promesse trompeuse.

Synonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: imrage,miarge,miraeg,miragge,mirgae,mirrage,mmirage,mriage

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of mirage - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

imrage2miarge2miraeg2miragge1mirgae2mirrage1mmirage1mriage2
Edit distance from "mirage"

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 "mirage"?
"mirage" is spelled M-I-R-A-G-E. The IPA pronunciation is \mi.ʁaʒ\.
What does "mirage" mean?
As a noun, "mirage" means: Phénomène dû à l’incurvation des rayons lumineux se réfléchissant sur les couches surchauffées de l’atmosphère voisines du sol et donnant souvent l’impression d’une réflexion sur une grande étendue...
What words are commonly confused with "mirage"?
"mirage" is commonly confused with "morale", "mitigé", "murale". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "mirage"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "mirage" is \mi.ʁaʒ\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "mirage" come from?
"mirage" 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 “mirage”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is M-I-R-A-G-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \mi.ʁaʒ\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “morale” - see the side-by-side comparison. mirage vs morale
  • 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.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list