pea

\ˈpiː\

/\ˈpiː\/ noun

The verdict

“pea” is a moderately-common French word, ranked #19,936 in French word frequency and used as a noun.

#19,936
frequency rank, French
3
letters
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Pois, pois cultivé, plante de l'espèce Pisum sativum, de la famille des Fabaceae).

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

pea vs pu
33% similar
pea vs PS
0% similar
pea vs PQ
0% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for pea
PropertyValue
Headwordpea
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\ˈpiː\
Letters3
Frequency rank#19,936
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “pea” 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). pea 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 pea is 3 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \ˈpiː\. Corpus data places it at rank #19,936 in overall French word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 6 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

No generated misspelling entries exist for pea in our index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "pu", "PS", "PQ", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct French form is pea, spelled P-E-A.

Definition

  1. 1
    Pois, pois cultivé, plante de l'espèce Pisum sativum, de la famille des Fabaceae).
  2. 2
    Toute plante de la famille des Fabaceae.
  3. 3
    Petit pois, pois, la partie mangeable de la plante Pisum sativum.
  4. 4
    Graine mangeable de différentes espèces de plantes.
  5. 5
    Une des variétés de haricots.
  6. 6
    Argent.

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 "pea"?
"pea" is spelled P-E-A. The IPA pronunciation is \ˈpiː\.
What does "pea" mean?
As a noun, "pea" means: Pois, pois cultivé, plante de l'espèce Pisum sativum, de la famille des Fabaceae).
What words are commonly confused with "pea"?
"pea" is commonly confused with "pu", "PS", "PQ". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "pea"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "pea" is \ˈpiː\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "pea" come from?
"pea" 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 “pea”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is P-E-A - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \ˈpiː\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “pu” - see the side-by-side comparison. pea vs pu
  • 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