plus ou moins

\ply.z‿u mwɛ̃\

/\ply.z‿u mwɛ̃\/ adv

The verdict

“plus ou moins” is uncommon French (outside the top frequency list), classed as an adverb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency French
13
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Environ, à peu près, grosso modo.

Corpus desk

Index FR-plus-ou-moins · plus ou moins · French

plus ou moins · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 13 letters
  • VOW-5 5 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "P" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

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.

Key facts for plus ou moins
PropertyValue
Headwordplus ou moins
LanguageFrench
Part of speechAdverb
IPA\ply.z‿u mwɛ̃\
Letters13
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Longue queue: rang de « plus ou moins » en français

plus ou moinssiège au-delà des 100.000 formes les plus fréquentes du français, dans la traîne du lexique spécialisé ou peu usité.

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

Rare enough to double-check

plus ou moins is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anadverb, transcribed \ply.z‿u mwɛ̃\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

No generated misspelling entries exist for plus ou moins in our index, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable French rules. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

This entry carries no recorded etymology, so its spelling is easiest to reason about phoneme by phoneme, absent a documented history. The correct French form is plus ou moins, spelled P-L-U-S- -O-U- -M-O-I-N-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    Environ, à peu près, grosso modo.
  2. 2
    À différents degrés.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. C’est aux environs de ce chemin, plus ou moins à droite, plus ou moins à gauche, que la veuve Rousselin est emprisonnée.
  2. La lecture on est une prononciation plus ou moins correcte du son chinois que les Japonais s’efforcèrent de reproduire.

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 "plus ou moins"?
"plus ou moins" is spelled P-L-U-S- -O-U- -M-O-I-N-S. The IPA pronunciation is \ply.z‿u mwɛ̃\.
What does "plus ou moins" mean?
As an adverb, "plus ou moins" means: Environ, à peu près, grosso modo.
How do you pronounce "plus ou moins"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "plus ou moins" is \ply.z‿u mwɛ̃\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "plus ou moins" come from?
"plus ou moins" 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list