pavois

\pa.vwa\

/\pa.vwa\/ noun

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

The verdict

“pavois” is uncommon French (frequency #75,989 among 248,534 “P” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#75,989
frequency rank, French
248,534
“P” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Sorte de grand bouclier en usage à l’époque mérovingienne. À la différence de la targe, il est recourbé.

Key facts for pavois
PropertyValue
Headwordpavois
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\pa.vwa\
Letters6
Frequency rank#75,989
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “pavois” 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). pavois 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

pavois is uncommon French at frequency #75,989 among 248,534 “P” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed \pa.vwa\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.

Zero misspellings are on record for pavois in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. Our dataset records no confusable match here, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct French form is pavois, spelled P-A-V-O-I-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Sorte de grand bouclier en usage à l’époque mérovingienne. À la différence de la targe, il est recourbé.
  2. 2
    Ensemble des pavillons répartis sur de légers cordages hissés aux mâts et vergues d’un navire. Ils servent habituellement aux signaux, et occasionnellement à célébrer un événement heureux.
  3. 3
    Tenue exceptionnelle.
  4. 4
    Partie supérieure de la muraille d’un navire qui dépasse du pont. Originellement, il était formé de boucliers fixés sur la partie supérieure du navire pour se protéger lors du combat.

This word in other languages

bulwark(English)

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 "pavois"?
"pavois" is spelled P-A-V-O-I-S. The IPA pronunciation is \pa.vwa\.
What does "pavois" mean?
As a noun, "pavois" means: Sorte de grand bouclier en usage à l’époque mérovingienne. À la différence de la targe, il est recourbé.
How do you pronounce "pavois"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "pavois" is \pa.vwa\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "pavois" come from?
"pavois" 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.

Using “pavois”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is P-A-V-O-I-S - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \pa.vwa\ (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