préposition

\pʁe.pɔ.zi.sjɔ̃\

/\pʁe.pɔ.zi.sjɔ̃\/ noun

The verdict

“préposition” is a moderately-common French word, ranked #38,491 in French word frequency and used as a noun.

#38,491
frequency rank, French
11
letters
17
tracked misspellings
2
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Adposition antéposée. Mot-outil qui se place immédiatement devant un syntagme et qui indique la relation syntaxique ou sémantique de ce syntagme dans la phrase.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

préposition vs proposition
91% similar
préposition vs propositions
83% similar

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

Key facts for préposition
PropertyValue
Headwordpréposition
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\pʁe.pɔ.zi.sjɔ̃\
Letters11
Frequency rank#38,491
Misspellings tracked17
Confusable pairs2
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “préposition” 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). préposition 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 préposition is 11 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \pʁe.pɔ.zi.sjɔ̃\. Corpus data places it at rank #38,491 in overall French word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. The dominant gloss from Wiktionary reads: "Adposition antéposée. Mot-outil qui se place immédiatement devant un syntagme et qui indique la relation syntaxique ou sémantique de ce syntagme dans la phrase.".

Our generated misspelling index lists 17 likely wrong-spelling variants for préposition, with forms such as "ppréposition", "preposition", and "prpéosition". 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 2 confusable-pair relationships, "proposition", "propositions", where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

This entry carries no recorded etymology, so spelling patterns must be inferred from the word's phoneme-to-grapheme mapping rather than from a documented borrowing chain. The correct French form is préposition, spelled P-R-É-P-O-S-I-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    Adposition antéposée. Mot-outil qui se place immédiatement devant un syntagme et qui indique la relation syntaxique ou sémantique de ce syntagme dans la phrase.

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: ppréposition,preposition,prpéosition,prréposition,préopsition,prépoistion,préposiiton,prépositino,prépositionn,prépositoin,préposittion,prépossition,prépostiion,prépposition,prépsoition,pérposition,rpéposition

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

ppréposition1preposition1prpéosition2prréposition1préopsition2prépoistion2préposiiton2prépositino2
Edit distance from "préposition"

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 "préposition"?
"préposition" is spelled P-R-É-P-O-S-I-T-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is \pʁe.pɔ.zi.sjɔ̃\.
What does "préposition" mean?
As a noun, "préposition" means: Adposition antéposée. Mot-outil qui se place immédiatement devant un syntagme et qui indique la relation syntaxique ou sémantique de ce syntagme dans la phrase.
What words are commonly confused with "préposition"?
"préposition" is commonly confused with "proposition", "propositions". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "préposition"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "préposition" is \pʁe.pɔ.zi.sjɔ̃\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "préposition" come from?
"préposition" is a French word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
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 “préposition”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is P-R-É-P-O-S-I-T-I-O-N - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \pʁe.pɔ.zi.sjɔ̃\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “proposition” - see the side-by-side comparison. préposition vs proposition
  • 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