paillette

\pa.jɛt\

/\pa.jɛt\/ noun

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

The verdict

“paillette” is uncommon French (frequency #58,132 among 248,534 “P” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#58,132
frequency rank, French
248,534
“P” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Lamelle de métal, brillante, mince, percée au milieu, ordinairement ronde, et qu’on applique sur une étoffe pour l’orner.

Key facts for paillette
PropertyValue
Headwordpaillette
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\pa.jɛt\
Letters9
Frequency rank#58,132
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “paillette” 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). paillette lands here:

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

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

Rare enough to double-check

paillette is uncommon French at frequency #58,132 among 248,534 “P” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed \pa.jɛt\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 7 senses are on record.

No generated misspelling entries exist for paillette in our index, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

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 paillette, spelled P-A-I-L-L-E-T-T-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Lamelle de métal, brillante, mince, percée au milieu, ordinairement ronde, et qu’on applique sur une étoffe pour l’orner.
  2. 2
    Petites parcelles d’or qu’on trouve dans le sable de quelques rivières.
  3. 3
    Petits points lumineux.
  4. 4
    Particule minérale ou organique en lamelles très minces.
  5. 5
    Dose de semence d’insémination artificielle.
  6. 6
    Dose de spermatozoïdes congelés d’environ 0,5 millilitres, utilisée pour la procréation médicalement assistée.
  7. 7
    Type de réflecteur léger utilisé en grand nombre pour former des nuages destinés à leurrer les radars et les autodirecteurs de missiles.

Synonyms

poudre aux yeux

This word in other languages

chaff(English)lentejuela(Español)

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 "paillette"?
"paillette" is spelled P-A-I-L-L-E-T-T-E. The IPA pronunciation is \pa.jɛt\.
What does "paillette" mean?
As a noun, "paillette" means: Lamelle de métal, brillante, mince, percée au milieu, ordinairement ronde, et qu’on applique sur une étoffe pour l’orner.
How do you pronounce "paillette"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "paillette" is \pa.jɛt\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "paillette" come from?
"paillette" 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 “paillette”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is P-A-I-L-L-E-T-T-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \pa.jɛt\ (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

Other uncommon French words near this rank

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