muraille

\my.ʁaj\

/\my.ʁaj\/ noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

The verdict

“muraille” is a moderately-common French word, ranked #16,421 in French word frequency and used as a noun.

#16,421
frequency rank, French
8
letters
9
tracked misspellings
7
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Ensemble de murs clôturant un espace.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

muraille vs murale
75% similar
muraille vs myrtille
75% similar
muraille vs murailles
89% similar

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

Key facts for muraille
PropertyValue
Headwordmuraille
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\my.ʁaj\
Letters8
Frequency rank#16,421
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs7
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “muraille” 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). muraille 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 muraille is 8 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \my.ʁaj\. Corpus data places it at rank #16,421 in overall French word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 18 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for muraille, with forms such as "mmuraille", "mruaille", and "muarille". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 7 confusable-pair relationships, "murale", "myrtille", "murailles", 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 is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct French form is muraille, spelled M-U-R-A-I-L-L-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Ensemble de murs clôturant un espace.
  2. 2
    Élévation de matière imposante par sa hauteur.
  3. 3
    Paroi verticale monomorphe.
  4. 4
    Meuble représentant un mur crénelé dans les armoiries. Il se blasonne comme le mur. Il se démarque du mur en occupant une grande surface de l’écu.
  5. 5
    Partie latérale de la coque d’un navire.
  6. 6
    Paroi de la cuirasse d’une pièce d’artillerie.
  7. 7
    Ceinture défensive entourant une ville. → voir cordon de muraille
  8. 8
    Paroi du sabot d’un ongulé.
  9. 9
    Mur d’une habitation ou d’une ville.
  10. 10
    Structure imaginaire destinée à protéger quelqu’un ou quelque chose.
  11. 11
    Ceinture protectrice.
  12. 12
    Zone de végétation naturelle.
  13. 13
    Bouclier de protection par la communication.
  14. 14
    Barrière mentale.
  15. 15
    Collectif protecteur.
  16. 16
    Système de protection du moi intérieur.
  17. 17
    Ensemble protégé par un système de défense. → voir muraille de Chine
  18. 18
    Ville.

Synonyms

enceinterempart

This word in other languages

great wall(English)muralla(Español)Mauer(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: mmuraille,mruaille,muarille,muraile,murailel,muralile,murialle,murraille,umraille

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

mmuraille1mruaille2muarille2muraile1murailel2muralile2murialle2murraille1
Edit distance from "muraille"

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 "muraille"?
"muraille" is spelled M-U-R-A-I-L-L-E. The IPA pronunciation is \my.ʁaj\.
What does "muraille" mean?
As a noun, "muraille" means: Ensemble de murs clôturant un espace.
What words are commonly confused with "muraille"?
"muraille" is commonly confused with "murale", "myrtille", "murailles". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "muraille"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "muraille" is \my.ʁaj\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "muraille" come from?
"muraille" is a French word. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for this and other words across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German on PlainSpell.
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 “muraille”

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

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