poursuivre

\puʁ.sɥivʁ\

/\puʁ.sɥivʁ\/ verb

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

The verdict

“poursuivre” is a regularly-used French word, ranked #2,792 in French word frequency and used as a verb.

#2,792
frequency rank, French
10
letters
14
tracked misspellings
8
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Suivre quelqu’un avec application, avec ardeur, courir après quelqu’un dans le dessein de l’atteindre, de le prendre.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

poursuivre vs poursuite
80% similar
poursuivre vs poursuivi
80% similar
poursuivre vs poursuive
90% similar

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

Key facts for poursuivre
PropertyValue
Headwordpoursuivre
LanguageFrench
Part of speechVerb
IPA\puʁ.sɥivʁ\
Letters10
Frequency rank#2,792
Misspellings tracked14
Confusable pairs8
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “poursuivre” 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). poursuivre 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 poursuivre is 10 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \puʁ.sɥivʁ\. Corpus data places it at rank #2,792 in overall French word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 8 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 14 likely wrong-spelling variants for poursuivre, with forms such as "opursuivre", "porusuivre", and "pourrsuivre". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 8 confusable-pair relationships, "poursuite", "poursuivi", "poursuive", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct French form is poursuivre, spelled P-O-U-R-S-U-I-V-R-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Suivre quelqu’un avec application, avec ardeur, courir après quelqu’un dans le dessein de l’atteindre, de le prendre.
  2. 2
    Persécuter, obséder, tourmenter avec obstination.
  3. 3
    Rechercher avec ardeur quelque chose, employer ses soins assidus pour l’obtenir.
  4. 4
    Continuer ce qu’on a commencé.
  5. 5
    Continuer.
  6. 6
    Agir contre quelqu’un par les voies de la justice.
  7. 7
    Faire les procédures, les diligences nécessaires pour faire juger.
  8. 8
    Essayer de s’attraper mutuellement.

This word in other languages

pursue(English)perseguir(Español)verfolgen(Deutsch)continuar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: opursuivre,porusuivre,pourrsuivre,poursiuvre,pourssuivre,poursuirve,poursuiver,poursuivrre,poursuivvre,poursuvire,pourusivre,pousruivre,ppoursuivre,puorsuivre

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

opursuivre2porusuivre2pourrsuivre1poursiuvre2pourssuivre1poursuirve2poursuiver2poursuivrre1
Edit distance from "poursuivre"

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 "poursuivre"?
"poursuivre" is spelled P-O-U-R-S-U-I-V-R-E. The IPA pronunciation is \puʁ.sɥivʁ\.
What does "poursuivre" mean?
As a verb, "poursuivre" means: Suivre quelqu’un avec application, avec ardeur, courir après quelqu’un dans le dessein de l’atteindre, de le prendre.
What words are commonly confused with "poursuivre"?
"poursuivre" is commonly confused with "poursuite", "poursuivi", "poursuive". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "poursuivre"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "poursuivre" is \puʁ.sɥivʁ\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "poursuivre" come from?
"poursuivre" 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.

Using “poursuivre”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is P-O-U-R-S-U-I-V-R-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \puʁ.sɥivʁ\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “poursuite” - see the side-by-side comparison. poursuivre vs poursuite
  • 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