plus-que-parfait

\plys.kə.paʁ.fɛ\

/\plys.kə.paʁ.fɛ\/ noun

The verdict

“plus-que-parfait” is uncommon French (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency French
16
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Temps d'un verbe à l’indicatif ou au subjonctif qui marque une action passée antérieurement à un autre temps déjà passé.

Corpus desk

Index FR-plus-que-parfait · plus-que-parfait · French

plus-que-parfait · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 16 letters
  • VOW-6 6 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-que-parfait
PropertyValue
Headwordplus-que-parfait
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\plys.kə.paʁ.fɛ\
Letters16
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “plus-que-parfait” sits in French frequency

plus-que-parfait 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.

Rare enough to double-check

plus-que-parfait is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed \plys.kə.paʁ.fɛ\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Temps d'un verbe à l’indicatif ou au subjonctif qui marque une action passée antérieurement à un autre temps déjà passé.".

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for plus-que-parfait, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct French form is plus-que-parfait, spelled P-L-U-S---Q-U-E---P-A-R-F-A-I-T.

Definition

  1. 1
    Temps d'un verbe à l’indicatif ou au subjonctif qui marque une action passée antérieurement à un autre temps déjà passé.

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

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

  1. Le père de Lamourette fut tué dès le début, à l’heure exacte où Félix Chèvreplat récitait le plus-que-parfait du verbe passif deleor.

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 3, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "plus-que-parfait"?
"plus-que-parfait" is spelled P-L-U-S---Q-U-E---P-A-R-F-A-I-T. The IPA pronunciation is \plys.kə.paʁ.fɛ\.
What does "plus-que-parfait" mean?
As a noun, "plus-que-parfait" means: Temps d'un verbe à l’indicatif ou au subjonctif qui marque une action passée antérieurement à un autre temps déjà passé.
How do you pronounce "plus-que-parfait"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "plus-que-parfait" is \plys.kə.paʁ.fɛ\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "plus-que-parfait" come from?
"plus-que-parfait" 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.

What to do next

You've looked up "plus-que-parfait". Here's where to go from here.

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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