service

\sɛʁ.vis\

/\sɛʁ.vis\/ noun

The verdict

“service” is in the everyday core of French, ranked #322 in French word frequency and used as a noun.

#322
frequency rank, French
7
letters
10
tracked misspellings
16
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Action de servir une personne ou une collectivité.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

service vs servir
71% similar
service vs survie
71% similar
service vs servis
71% similar

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

Key facts for service
PropertyValue
Headwordservice
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\sɛʁ.vis\
Letters7
Frequency rank#322
Misspellings tracked10
Confusable pairs16
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “service” 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). service 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 service is 7 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \sɛʁ.vis\. Corpus data places it at rank #322 in overall French word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. Wiktionary records 21 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 10 likely wrong-spelling variants for service, with forms such as "esrvice", "serivce", and "serrvice". 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 16 confusable-pair relationships, "servir", "survie", "servis", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct French form is service, spelled S-E-R-V-I-C-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Action de servir une personne ou une collectivité.
  2. 2
    Action de servir une personne ou une collectivité.
  3. 3
    Par civilité, indique le fait d’être à la disposition de quelqu’un, prêt à faire ce qui pourra lui être utile ou agréable.
  4. 4
    Fait de servir les plats à table et de les ôter.
  5. 5
    Ensemble de la vaisselle ou du linge qui sert à table.
  6. 6
    Indique le fait d’être le domestique de quelqu’un. Manière dont un domestique s’acquitte de ses fonctions.
  7. 7
    Emploi, fonction de ceux qui servent l’État dans la magistrature, dans les finances, dans l’armée, dans la marine, ou qui font partie d’une administration.
  8. 8
    Travail effectif ou effectué.
  9. 9
    Manière dont quelqu’un a servi, temps pendant lequel il a servi.
  10. 10
    Ensemble d’opérations, de travaux, etc., servant à un usage déterminé dans les administrations, les établissements publics ou particuliers.
  11. 11
    Usage, utilité qu’on retire des animaux et de certaines choses.
  12. 12
    Assistance qu’on donne ; aide qu’on prête à quelqu’un.
  13. 13
    Célébration solennelle de l’office divin, de la messe et de toutes les prières publiques qui se font dans l’église.
  14. 14
    Action de celui qui sert la balle, le ballon ou le volant.
  15. 15
    Au théâtre, se dit des invitations envoyées aux critiques, aux membres de la presse.
  16. 16
    Publication que l’on envoie régulièrement et gratuitement à quelqu’un.
  17. 17
    Servitude.
  18. 18
    Produit ou bien immatériel, par opposition à l’agriculture (secteur primaire) ou à l’industrie (secteur secondaire).
  19. 19
    Dans un modèle client-serveur, fonctionnalité qui répond aux requêtes des logiciels client ; logiciel fonctionnant sans interface utilisateur.
  20. 20
    Ellipse de service militaire.
  21. 21
    Projecteur éclairant la scène d’une salle de spectacles quand elle n’est pas utilisée.

Synonyms

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: esrvice,serivce,serrvice,servcie,servicce,serviec,servvice,sevrice,srevice,sservice

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of service - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

esrvice2serivce2serrvice1servcie2servicce1serviec2servvice1sevrice2
Edit distance from "service"

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 "service"?
"service" is spelled S-E-R-V-I-C-E. The IPA pronunciation is \sɛʁ.vis\.
What does "service" mean?
As a noun, "service" means: Action de servir une personne ou une collectivité.
What words are commonly confused with "service"?
"service" is commonly confused with "servir", "survie", "servis". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "service"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "service" is \sɛʁ.vis\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "service" come from?
"service" 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 “service”

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

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