nimbe

\nɛ̃b\

/\nɛ̃b\/ noun

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

The verdict

“nimbe” is an uncommon French word, ranked #98,296 in French word frequency and used as a noun.

#98,296
frequency rank, French
5
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Cercle ou auréole que les peintres ou les sculpteurs mettent autour de la tête des saints.

Key facts for nimbe
PropertyValue
Headwordnimbe
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\nɛ̃b\
Letters5
Frequency rank#98,296
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “nimbe” 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). nimbe 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 nimbe is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \nɛ̃b\. Corpus data places it at rank #98,296 in overall French word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 4 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for nimbe, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, since no other headword is close enough in sound or shape to pair with it.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct French form is nimbe, spelled N-I-M-B-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Cercle ou auréole que les peintres ou les sculpteurs mettent autour de la tête des saints.
  2. 2
    Cercle que les peintres, les sculpteurs anciens traçaient quelquefois autour de la tête d’une divinité, d’un héros divinisé.
  3. 3
    Cercle que, sur certaines médailles, et particulièrement sur des médailles du Bas-Empire, on remarque autour de la tête de quelques empereurs.
  4. 4
    Halo ou flou qui entoure une personne ou une chose.

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 "nimbe"?
"nimbe" is spelled N-I-M-B-E. The IPA pronunciation is \nɛ̃b\.
What does "nimbe" mean?
As a noun, "nimbe" means: Cercle ou auréole que les peintres ou les sculpteurs mettent autour de la tête des saints.
How do you pronounce "nimbe"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "nimbe" is \nɛ̃b\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "nimbe" come from?
"nimbe" 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.

Using “nimbe”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is N-I-M-B-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \nɛ̃b\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • 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