nonpareil

\nɔ̃.pa.ʁɛj\

/\nɔ̃.pa.ʁɛj\/ adj

The verdict

“nonpareil” is uncommon French (outside the top frequency list), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency French
9
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Sans pareil, sans égal.

Corpus desk

Index FR-nonpareil · nonpareil · French

nonpareil · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "N" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

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.

Key facts for nonpareil
PropertyValue
Headwordnonpareil
LanguageFrench
Part of speechAdjective
IPA\nɔ̃.pa.ʁɛj\
Letters9
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Longue queue: rang de « nonpareil » en français

nonpareilsiège au-delà des 100.000 formes les plus fréquentes du français, dans la traîne du lexique spécialisé ou peu usité.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

nonpareil is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anadjective, transcribed \nɔ̃.pa.ʁɛj\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Sans pareil, sans égal.".

No generated misspelling entries exist for nonpareil in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Wiktionary doesn't record an etymology for this headword, so any spelling logic here comes from how the word's sounds map to letters, not a documented origin story. The correct French form is nonpareil, spelled N-O-N-P-A-R-E-I-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    Sans pareil, sans égal.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. C'est grâce aux astres nonpareils, / Qui tout au fond du ciel flamboient, / Que mes yeux consumés ne voient / Que des souvenirs de soleils.
  2. — Vous savez sa qualité véritable dont le marquis de Bruyères se porte garant, fit Vidalinc ; toutefois, sa force nonpareille à l’épée m’étonne, elle passe les habiletés connues.

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "nonpareil"?
"nonpareil" is spelled N-O-N-P-A-R-E-I-L. The IPA pronunciation is \nɔ̃.pa.ʁɛj\.
What does "nonpareil" mean?
As an adjective, "nonpareil" means: Sans pareil, sans égal.
How do you pronounce "nonpareil"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "nonpareil" is \nɔ̃.pa.ʁɛj\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "nonpareil" come from?
"nonpareil" 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list