scène

\sɛn\

/\sɛn\/ noun

The verdict

“scène” is in the everyday core of French, ranked #639 in French word frequency and used as a noun.

#639
frequency rank, French
5
letters
8
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Partie du théâtre où les acteurs jouent devant le public.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

scène vs See
20% similar
scène vs sen
40% similar
scène vs sens
40% similar

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

Key facts for scène
PropertyValue
Headwordscène
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\sɛn\
Letters5
Frequency rank#639
Misspellings tracked8
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “scène” 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). scène 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 scène is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \sɛn\. Corpus data places it at rank #639 in overall French word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. Wiktionary records 11 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 scène, with forms such as "csène", "sccène", and "scene". 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 20 confusable-pair relationships, "See", "sen", "sens", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, 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 scène, spelled S-C-È-N-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Partie du théâtre où les acteurs jouent devant le public.
  2. 2
    Lieu de l’action qu’on représente sur le théâtre.
  3. 3
    Art dramatique.
  4. 4
    Sous-partie d’un acte.
  5. 5
    Spectacle, aspect de la nature, d’un ensemble d’objets qui s’offre à la vue.
  6. 6
    Toute action qui offre quelque chose de vif, d’animé, d’intéressant, d’extraordinaire, qui fait impression.
  7. 7
    Querelle ; dispute ; colère.
  8. 8
    Démonstration affectée ; emphatique.
  9. 9
    Lieu où se déroule une action.
  10. 10
    Unité de découpage normalisée de l’information fournie par un système imageur spatioporté, aux fins d’identification, de traitement et de commercialisation.
  11. 11
    Surface observée correspondant à un lot de données auquel on applique le même prétraitement.

Synonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: csène,sccène,scene,scnèe,scèen,scènne,sscène,sècne

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of scène - 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.

csène2sccène1scene1scnèe2scèen2scènne1sscène1sècne2
Edit distance from "scène"

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 "scène"?
"scène" is spelled S-C-È-N-E. The IPA pronunciation is \sɛn\.
What does "scène" mean?
As a noun, "scène" means: Partie du théâtre où les acteurs jouent devant le public.
What words are commonly confused with "scène"?
"scène" is commonly confused with "See", "sen", "sens". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "scène"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "scène" is \sɛn\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "scène" come from?
"scène" is a French word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
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 “scène”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is S-C-È-N-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \sɛn\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “See” - see the side-by-side comparison. scène vs See
  • 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