rien que
\ʁjɛ̃ kə\
The verdict
“rien que” is uncommon French (outside the top frequency list), classed as an adverb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency French
- 8
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - (En corrélation avec ne) Seulement ; uniquement.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | rien que |
| Language | French |
| Part of speech | Adverb |
| IPA | \ʁjɛ̃ kə\ |
| Letters | 8 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “rien que” sits in French frequency
Rare enough to double-check
rien que is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anadverb, transcribed \ʁjɛ̃ kə\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.
We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for rien que, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. This headword has no recorded confusable partner, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.
This entry's etymology isn't recorded, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct French form is rien que, spelled R-I-E-N- -Q-U-E.
Definition
- 1(En corrélation avec ne) Seulement ; uniquement.
- 2Se réduire à, n'être que.
This word in other languages
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.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Using “rien que”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct French spelling is R-I-E-N- -Q-U-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as \ʁjɛ̃ kə\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- 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.