rebrousser chemin
\ʁə.bʁu.se ʃə.mɛ̃\
The verdict
“rebrousser chemin” is uncommon French (outside the top frequency list), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency French
- 17
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Retourner subitement en arrière, faire demi-tour.
Corpus desk
Index FR-rebrousser-chemin · rebrousser chemin · French
rebrousser chemin · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-MEGA 17 letters
- VOW-6 6 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "R" 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.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | rebrousser chemin |
| Language | French |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | \ʁə.bʁu.se ʃə.mɛ̃\ |
| Letters | 17 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Longue queue: rang de « rebrousser chemin » en français
Rare enough to double-check
rebrousser chemin is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as averb, transcribed \ʁə.bʁu.se ʃə.mɛ̃\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.
We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for rebrousser chemin, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. Our dataset records no confusable match here, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so any spelling logic here comes from how the word's sounds map to letters, not a documented origin story. The correct French form is rebrousser chemin, spelled R-E-B-R-O-U-S-S-E-R- -C-H-E-M-I-N.
Definition
- 1Retourner subitement en arrière, faire demi-tour.
- 2Repartir dans le sens inverse de la digestion, régurgiter.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how rebrousser chemin appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
Le hasard nous a fait rencontrer dans la foule quelques-uns de nos amis qui avaient eu querelle avec le cocher de M. de Chavigny qui les écrasait, il s’en est suivi quelques propos un peu vifs, quelques petits gestes un peu brusques, quelques égratignures qui ont fait rebrousser chemin au carrosse.
L’un de ces fugitifs que je questionnai au passage, me répondit que les Prussiens arrivaient en grand nombre : ils avaient coupé la route entre Mézières et Rethel, et me conseilla de rebrousser chemin.
Synonyms
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.