pilule

\pi.lyl\

/\pi.lyl\/ noun

The verdict

“pilule” has 8 generated spelling variants in the French index at frequency #8,907. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#8,907
frequency rank, French
6,826
“P” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Forme pharmaceutique en forme de petite boule, qu’on avale ; comprimé.

Corpus desk

Index FR-pilule · pilule · French

pilule · rank #8,907 · 8 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #8,907
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,826
  • PHOTO-FINISH Philippines

Nearest frequency peer: Philippines (-1 rank slots)

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.

Pairs de rang près de l'aimant d'erreurs « pilule »

Même bande de rareté: utile si une faute tombe sur un lemme voisin

corpus weight

What this shows « pilule » siège parmi ces pairs FrequencyWords; la profondeur des fautes est suivie à part dans le graphique d'édition.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

pilule vs pluie
67% similar
pilule vs poule
67% similar
pilule vs pique
67% similar

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

Key facts for pilule
PropertyValue
Headwordpilule
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\pi.lyl\
Letters6
Frequency rank#8,907
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Fréquence de l'aimant d'erreurs « pilule »

Cette échelle va du noyau du français courant (gauche) jusqu'à la traîne des formes rares (droite).pilulese place ici:

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

L'axe est logarithmique: chaque tic marque environ dix fois moins de fréquence. Dans la même bande de rareté figurent « Philippines » (#8,906), « pleines » (#8,908), « perpignan » (#8,905). Parmi 6,826 lemmes en « P », « pilule » est au #8,907. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around pilule (IPA \pi.lyl\), anoun. Corpus frequency is #8,907 among 6,826 “P” headwords. Wiktionary lists 3 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for pilule, with forms such as "iplule", "pillue", and "pillule". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "pluie", "poule", "pique", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct French form is pilule, spelled P-I-L-U-L-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Forme pharmaceutique en forme de petite boule, qu’on avale ; comprimé.
  2. 2
    Produit, en forme de comprimé, qui est un des moyens de contraception pour la femme.
  3. 3
    Idée difficile à accepter, action difficile à faire.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. C’était un plastron en flanelle rouge, l’un de ces talismans quasi hygiéniques qui, avec les pilules et les spécialités pharmaceutiques, remplacent, chez les peuples protestants de la chrétienté, les images et les reliques miraculeuses.
  2. Mais tout de suite, tombée à terre près de la chaise de Salomé, la chose m'a sauté aux yeux : cette plaque dont l'avers de plastique transparent faisait sandwich avec un revers de papier d'étain et laissait voir, dans vingt et une logettes, des pilules roses portant chacune l'indication d'un jour de la semaine.

Synonyms

cachetdragéegélulepilule anticonceptionnellepilule contraceptive

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • iplule
  • pillue
  • pillule
  • piluel
  • pilulle
  • piulle
  • pliule
  • ppilule

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of pilule - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

iplule2pillue2pillule1piluel2pilulle1piulle2pliule2ppilule1
Edit distance from "pilule"

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 "pilule"?
"pilule" is spelled P-I-L-U-L-E. The IPA pronunciation is \pi.lyl\.
What does "pilule" mean?
As a noun, "pilule" means: Forme pharmaceutique en forme de petite boule, qu’on avale ; comprimé.
What words are commonly confused with "pilule"?
"pilule" is commonly confused with "pluie", "poule", "pique". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "pilule"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "pilule" is \pi.lyl\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "pilule" come from?
"pilule" 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.

Similar French words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "pilule", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked French headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list