position

\po.zi.sjɔ̃\

/\po.zi.sjɔ̃\/ noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

The verdict

“position” is in the everyday core of French, ranked #709 in French word frequency and used as a noun.

#709
frequency rank, French
8
letters
11
tracked misspellings
10
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Situation dans une structure, place dans un ensemble de coordonnées ; lieu, point où une chose est placée, situation.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

position vs potion
75% similar
position vs positive
75% similar
position vs punition
75% similar

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

Key facts for position
PropertyValue
Headwordposition
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\po.zi.sjɔ̃\
Letters8
Frequency rank#709
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs10
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “position” 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). position 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 position is 8 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \po.zi.sjɔ̃\. Corpus data places it at rank #709 in overall French word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. Wiktionary records 12 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for position, with forms such as "opsition", "poistion", and "posiiton". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 10 confusable-pair relationships, "potion", "positive", "punition", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

No explicit etymology string is stored for this entry, so its spelling is easiest to reason about phoneme by phoneme, absent a documented history. The correct French form is position, spelled P-O-S-I-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    Situation dans une structure, place dans un ensemble de coordonnées ; lieu, point où une chose est placée, situation.
  2. 2
    Terrain choisi pour y placer un corps de troupes destiné à quelque opération militaire ; terrain occupé par l’ennemi.
  3. 3
    Posture d’une personne, manière dont une chose est posée.
  4. 4
    Situation et posture des corps durant l’acte d’amour.
  5. 5
    Manière de poser les pieds, l’un par rapport à l’autre.
  6. 6
    Manière de placer la main gauche sur le manche d’un instrument à cordes.
  7. 7
    Point de doctrine contenus dans une thèse. D’où, au pluriel, long résumé d'une thèse académique, précisant les principaux points abordés.
  8. 8
    Point de vue ; avis.
  9. 9
    Situation, circonstances où l’on se trouve.
  10. 10
    Condition, emploi, place.
  11. 11
    État des fonds.
  12. 12
    Attitude prescrite par le règlement.

Synonyms

emplacement

This word in other languages

position(English)posición(Español)Platz(Deutsch)posição(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: opsition,poistion,posiiton,positino,positionn,positoin,posittion,possition,postiion,pposition,psoition

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

opsition2poistion2posiiton2positino2positionn1positoin2posittion1possition1
Edit distance from "position"

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 "position"?
"position" is spelled P-O-S-I-T-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is \po.zi.sjɔ̃\.
What does "position" mean?
As a noun, "position" means: Situation dans une structure, place dans un ensemble de coordonnées ; lieu, point où une chose est placée, situation.
What words are commonly confused with "position"?
"position" is commonly confused with "potion", "positive", "punition". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "position"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "position" is \po.zi.sjɔ̃\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "position" come from?
"position" 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 “position”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is P-O-S-I-T-I-O-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \po.zi.sjɔ̃\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “potion” - see the side-by-side comparison. position vs potion
  • Browse more French words and confusable pairs in the same reference. French words
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