rouleau

Name: rouleau, French Word Data
Creator: Wiktionary
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

\ʁu.lo\

/\ʁu.lo\/ noun

By PlainSpell Editorial Team · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) · analyzed May 6, 2026

The verdict

“rouleau” is a moderately-common French word, ranked #10,065 in French word frequency and used as a noun.

#10,065
frequency rank, French: 7
letters: 8
tracked misspellings: 10
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Objet de forme cylindrique oblongue.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

rouleau vs rouler

71% similar

rouleau vs roulez

71% similar

rouleau vs roulés

57% similar

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

Key facts for rouleau
Property	Value
Headword	rouleau
Language	French
Part of speech	Noun
IPA	\ʁu.lo\
Letters	7
Frequency rank	#10,065
Misspellings tracked	8
Confusable pairs	10
Source	Wiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “rouleau” 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). rouleau lands here:

#10,065

#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 rouleau is 7 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \ʁu.lo\. Corpus data places it at rank #10,065 in overall French word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 13 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 8 likely wrong-spelling variants for rouleau, with forms such as "oruleau", "rolueau", and "rouelau". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 10 confusable-pair relationships, "rouler", "roulez", "roulés", and more, a pairing that trips writers up because the two words share enough sound or shape to blur together.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct French form is rouleau, spelled R-O-U-L-E-A-U.

Definition

1
Objet de forme cylindrique oblongue.
2
Bande de papier, d’étoffe, de métal, etc., enroulée sur elle-même ou sur une tige cylindrique.
3
Bigoudi.
4
Type de coiffure féminine comportant des mèches enroulées.
5
Objet cylindrique servant à rouler, à étendre, à niveler un matériau, une pâte.
6
Cylindre de bois sur lequel coulait une composition spéciale et qui servait à encrer les formes.
7
Ellipse de rouleau compresseur, engin de travaux publics muni d’un rouleau (3) métallique et destiné à niveler le sol.
8
Outil de travaux aratoires.
9
Rondin de bois cylindriques sur lesquelles on fait rouler des fardeaux.
10
Cylindre rotatif sur paliers, libre ou entraîné, servant de support pour des éléments mobiles en vue de les manutentionner ou de les guider.
11
Tiges cylindriques ou bombées, le plus souvent en acier spécial, équipant les roulements à rouleaux.
12
Vague déferlante sur une grande longueur.
13
Cylindre sur lequel étaient gravés des sons destinés à être entendus sur un phonographe.

This word in other languages

roller(English)rodillo(Español)Rolle(Deutsch)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: oruleau,rolueau,rouelau,roulaeu,rouleua,roulleau,rrouleau,ruoleau

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of rouleau - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

Edit distance from "rouleau"

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 "rouleau"?

"rouleau" is spelled R-O-U-L-E-A-U. The IPA pronunciation is \ʁu.lo\.

What does "rouleau" mean?

As a noun, "rouleau" means: Objet de forme cylindrique oblongue.

What words are commonly confused with "rouleau"?

"rouleau" is commonly confused with "rouler", "roulez", "roulés". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.

How do you pronounce "rouleau"?

The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "rouleau" is \ʁu.lo\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.

What language does "rouleau" come from?

"rouleau" 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 “rouleau”

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

The one correct French spelling is R-O-U-L-E-A-U - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
Say it as \ʁu.lo\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
Don't mix it up with “rouler” - see the side-by-side comparison. rouleau vs rouler
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.