par cœur

\paʁ kœʁ\

/\paʁ kœʁ\/ adv

The verdict

“par cœur” is outside the top-ranked French vocabulary, used as an adverb - the kind of word writers most often double-check.

Unranked
below top-frequency French
8
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - De mémoire.

Key facts for par cœur
PropertyValue
Headwordpar cœur
LanguageFrench
Part of speechAdverb
IPA\paʁ kœʁ\
Letters8
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “par cœur” sits in French frequency

par cœur falls outside the top-100,000 ranked French words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

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

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The French entry for par cœur is 8 letters long, classified as an adverb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \paʁ kœʁ\. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

par cœur doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, a sign its spelling follows regular French conventions. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct French form is par cœur, spelled P-A-R- -C-Œ-U-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    De mémoire.
  2. 2
    Complétement, à fond, de fond en comble. S’emploie généralement avec le verbe connaitre
  3. 3
    Sans manger.

Synonyms

sur le bout des doigtsremplacé par un coup de sifflet bref

This word in other languages

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 "par cœur"?
"par cœur" is spelled P-A-R- -C-Œ-U-R. The IPA pronunciation is \paʁ kœʁ\.
What does "par cœur" mean?
As an adverb, "par cœur" means: De mémoire.
How do you pronounce "par cœur"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "par cœur" is \paʁ kœʁ\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "par cœur" come from?
"par cœur" 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 “par cœur”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is P-A-R- -C-Œ-U-R - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \paʁ kœʁ\ (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