nerveux
\nɛʁ.vø\
The verdict
“nerveux” is a regularly-used French word, ranked #5,370 in French word frequency and used as an adjective.
- #5,370
- frequency rank, French
- 7
- letters
- 10
- tracked misspellings
- 4
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Relatif aux nerfs et au système nerveux.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | nerveux |
| Language | French |
| Part of speech | Adjective |
| IPA | \nɛʁ.vø\ |
| Letters | 7 |
| Frequency rank | #5,370 |
| Misspellings tracked | 10 |
| Confusable pairs | 4 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “nerveux” sits in French frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The French entry for nerveux is 7 letters long, classified as an adjective, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \nɛʁ.vø\. Corpus data places it at rank #5,370 in overall French word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 9 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for nerveux, with forms such as "enrveux", "nerevux", and "nerrveux". 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 4 confusable-pair relationships, "neveu", "neveux", "neigeux", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.
Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct French form is nerveux, spelled N-E-R-V-E-U-X.
Definition
- 1Relatif aux nerfs et au système nerveux.
- 2Qualifie une personne qui a les nerfs sensibles ou irritables.
- 3Qualifie un état de nervosité accidentelle ou passagère.
- 4Qui a de bons nerfs ; qui a de la force dans les muscles.
- 5Qualifie ce qui a de la fermeté, de la vigueur.
- 6Qui est plein de nerfs et de muscles.
- 7Qualifie une viande trop dure.
- 8Qui tend à se déformer après l’abattage, en particulier lors de son utilisation en menuiserie.
- 9Qualifie un charbon particulièrement dur.
Synonyms
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: enrveux,nerevux,nerrveux,nerveuxx,nervexu,nervuex,nervveux,nevreux,nnerveux,nreveux
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of nerveux - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.
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 "nerveux"?
What does "nerveux" mean?
What words are commonly confused with "nerveux"?
How do you pronounce "nerveux"?
What language does "nerveux" come from?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “nerveux”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct French spelling is N-E-R-V-E-U-X - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as \nɛʁ.vø\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “neveu” - see the side-by-side comparison. nerveux vs neveu
- 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.