point de bascule

\pwɛ̃ d(ə) bas.kyl\

/\pwɛ̃ d(ə) bas.kyl\/ noun

The verdict

“point de bascule” 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) - (Par allusion au mouvement d’une bascule) Seuil temporel à partir duquel une situation change de régime ou s’inverse nettement ; moment à partir duquel « tout va différemment ».

Corpus desk

Index FR-point-de-bascule · point de bascule · French

point de bascule · 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 point de bascule
PropertyValue
Headwordpoint de bascule
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\pwɛ̃ d(ə) bas.kyl\
Letters16
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Longue queue: rang de « point de bascule » en français

point de basculen'entre pas dans le top 100.000 du français: zone de termes techniques, archaïques ou rares.

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

Rare enough to double-check

point de bascule is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed \pwɛ̃ d(ə) bas.kyl\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

point de bascule doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, suggesting the orthography follows predictable French patterns. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct French form is point de bascule, spelled P-O-I-N-T- -D-E- -B-A-S-C-U-L-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    (Par allusion au mouvement d’une bascule) Seuil temporel à partir duquel une situation change de régime ou s’inverse nettement ; moment à partir duquel « tout va différemment ».
  2. 2
    Seuil de non-linéarité au-delà duquel une variation produit un effet disproportionné (retournement de tendance, changement d’état, transition de phase ou changement de régime).

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Dans La Bourgeoise d’Orléans, il y a un point de bascule au moment où la bourgeoise reconnaît son mari déguisé.
  2. « Il y a des moments dans l’existence où l’on sent que la vie va prendre une densité nouvelle. Pourquoi, comment, personne ne le sait, mais on le sent. Le chemin à suivre semble soudain s’éclaircir. Gertrude, ce sont des points de bascule, très rares, qu’il ne faut pas rater. »

Synonyms

tournantmoment charnièreseuil critiquepoint de retournementseuil de déclenchement

Antonyms

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 "point de bascule"?
"point de bascule" is spelled P-O-I-N-T- -D-E- -B-A-S-C-U-L-E. The IPA pronunciation is \pwɛ̃ d(ə) bas.kyl\.
What does "point de bascule" mean?
As a noun, "point de bascule" means: (Par allusion au mouvement d’une bascule) Seuil temporel à partir duquel une situation change de régime ou s’inverse nettement ; moment à partir duquel « tout va différemment ».
How do you pronounce "point de bascule"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "point de bascule" is \pwɛ̃ d(ə) bas.kyl\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "point de bascule" come from?
"point de bascule" 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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list