refuge

\ʁə.fyʒ\

/\ʁə.fyʒ\/ noun

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

The verdict

“refuge” has 8 generated spelling variants in the French index at frequency #5,392. The variants make it a useful spelling check.

#5,392
frequency rank, French
5,742
“R” headwords
8
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 2, 2026) - Asile ; retraite ; lieu où l’on cherche un abri.

Corpus desk

Index FR-refuge · refuge · French

refuge · rank #5,392 · 8 variants · 20 confusables

  • FREQ-COMMON #5,392
  • LEN-LONG 6 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-HIGH 20 pairs
  • VAR-MID 8 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,742
  • PHOTO-FINISH provenance

Nearest frequency peer: provenance (-1 rank slots)

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.

Frequency neighbourhood for “refuge”

Lower corpus rank = more everyday usage (inverted bar length for readability)

corpus weight

What this shows Bars show where “refuge” sits against the nearest ranked French headwords in the FrequencyWords band, not a reprint of letter-browse containment.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 2, 2026

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

refuge vs rouge
67% similar
refuge vs revue
67% similar
refuge vs refus
67% similar

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

Key facts for refuge
PropertyValue
Headwordrefuge
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\ʁə.fyʒ\
Letters6
Frequency rank#5,392
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “refuge” 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). refuge lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

A misspelling magnet

The generator records 8 spelling variants around refuge (IPA \ʁə.fyʒ\), anoun. Corpus frequency is #5,392 among 5,742 “R” headwords. Wiktionary lists 7 senses, so context still picks the gloss.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for refuge, with forms such as "erfuge", "reffuge", and "refgue". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "rouge", "revue", "refus", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

No documented word history exists for this headword, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct French form is refuge, spelled R-E-F-U-G-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Asile ; retraite ; lieu où l’on cherche un abri.
  2. 2
    Ensemble des pays dans lesquels se sont installés les Huguenots qui ont fui la France pendant les persécutions.
  3. 3
    Centre d’accueil et de protection destiné à recueillir les animaux trouvés.
  4. 4
    Habitat de montagne pour les alpinistes.
  5. 5
    Terre-plein au milieu de la voie publique où les piétons peuvent se garer des voitures.
  6. 6
    Bienfaiteur dont on attend, dont on implore la protection, le secours.
  7. 7
    Prétexte, raisons apparentes sous lesquelles l’erreur ou la mauvaise foi cherche à se mettre à couvert.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how refuge appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Il avait pris le maquis un an plus tôt : arrêté par les gendarmes d’Alès, en avril 1943, pour ses activités politiques, il s’était évadé et avait trouvé refuge chez les francs-tireurs et partisans (FTP).
  2. Carcassonne était la place centrale des opérations entreprises contre l’armée aragonaise et un refuge assuré en cas d’échec.

Synonyms

havrehavre de paix

This word in other languages

refuge(English)refugio(Español)Zufluchtsort(Deutsch)refúgio(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as:

  • erfuge
  • reffuge
  • refgue
  • refueg
  • refugge
  • reufge
  • rfeuge
  • rrefuge

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

erfuge2reffuge1refgue2refueg2refugge1reufge2rfeuge2rrefuge1
Edit distance from "refuge"

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.

PlainSpell is rendered directly from structured Wiktionary extracts and open word-frequency lists, no number is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of September 2, 2026. Primary sources: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) and FrequencyWords.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "refuge"?
"refuge" is spelled R-E-F-U-G-E. The IPA pronunciation is \ʁə.fyʒ\.
What does "refuge" mean?
As a noun, "refuge" means: Asile ; retraite ; lieu où l’on cherche un abri.
What words are commonly confused with "refuge"?
"refuge" is commonly confused with "rouge", "revue", "refus". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "refuge"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "refuge" is \ʁə.fyʒ\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "refuge" come from?
"refuge" 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.

Similar French words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "refuge", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked French headwords with 6 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

priori#5,390saints#5,398poster#5,385soyons#5,403

Similar misspelling depth

Headwords with a similar count of attested misspellings (8 here; floor ≥5).

perds8 variantsparcs8 variantsopposer8 variantsneutre8 variants

What to do next

You've looked up "refuge". Here's where to go from here.

  • "refuge" maps to 20 confusable pairs in this vintage; the highest-scored is "rouge". View pair
  • 8 edit-distance misspelling variants are generated for spell-check research on this headword. See variants
  • Usage frequency rank #5,392 among French headwords in this corpus. Corpus statistics
  • Browse more French words in the "R" letter cohort. R–Z browse

PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.

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