polystyrène

\pɔ.lis.ti.ʁɛn\

/\pɔ.lis.ti.ʁɛn\/ noun

The verdict

“polystyrène” is a moderately-common French word, ranked #45,233 in French word frequency and used as a noun.

#45,233
frequency rank, French
11
letters
19
tracked misspellings

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Thermoplastique obtenu par la polymérisation des monomères de styrène.

Key facts for polystyrène
PropertyValue
Headwordpolystyrène
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\pɔ.lis.ti.ʁɛn\
Letters11
Frequency rank#45,233
Misspellings tracked19
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “polystyrène” 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). polystyrène 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 polystyrène is 11 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \pɔ.lis.ti.ʁɛn\. Corpus data places it at rank #45,233 in overall French word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 19 likely wrong-spelling variants for polystyrène, with forms such as "oplystyrène", "ploystyrène", and "pollystyrène". 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 is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so spelling patterns must be inferred from the word's phoneme-to-grapheme mapping rather than from a documented borrowing chain. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct French form is polystyrène, spelled P-O-L-Y-S-T-Y-R-È-N-E, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.

Definition

  1. 1
    Thermoplastique obtenu par la polymérisation des monomères de styrène.
  2. 2
    Polystyrène expansé, mousse blanche et compacte, constituée de ce thermoplastique, utilisée le plus souvent comme isolant thermique et comme emballage.

Synonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: oplystyrène,ploystyrène,pollystyrène,polsytyrène,polysstyrène,polystryène,polysttyrène,polystyrene,polystyrnèe,polystyrrène,polystyrèen,polystyrènne,polystyyrène,polystyèrne,polysytrène,polytsyrène,polyystyrène,poylstyrène,ppolystyrène

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of polystyrène - measured in single-character edits (insert, delete, or substitute a letter). Larger bars are easier to catch; one-edit slips are the sneakiest.

oplystyrène2ploystyrène2pollystyrène1polsytyrène2polysstyrène1polystryène2polysttyrène1polystyrene1
Edit distance from "polystyrène"

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.

Cite this page

Free to reuse with attribution (CC BY-SA). Copy the citation:

PlainSpell, “polystyrène, French word data” (May 6, 2026). Derived from Wiktionary (kaikki.org, CC BY-SA) and an open word-frequency list. https://plainspell.com/fr/mot/polystyrene

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "polystyrène"?
"polystyrène" is spelled P-O-L-Y-S-T-Y-R-È-N-E. The IPA pronunciation is \pɔ.lis.ti.ʁɛn\.
What does "polystyrène" mean?
As a noun, "polystyrène" means: Thermoplastique obtenu par la polymérisation des monomères de styrène.
What are common misspellings of "polystyrène"?
Common misspellings include "oplystyrène", "ploystyrène", "pollystyrène", "polsytyrène", "polysstyrène". The correct spelling is "polystyrène".
How do you pronounce "polystyrène"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "polystyrène" is \pɔ.lis.ti.ʁɛn\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "polystyrène" come from?
"polystyrène" 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.

Using “polystyrène”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is P-O-L-Y-S-T-Y-R-È-N-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \pɔ.lis.ti.ʁɛn\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Browse more French words and confusable pairs in the same reference. French words

Nearby French words

Other entries that begin with the letter P in our French index:

Explore PlainSpell

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