sham
\ʃæm\
The verdict
“sham” is uncommon French (frequency #50,508 among 394,209 “S” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- #50,508
- frequency rank, French
- 394,209
- “S” headwords
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Simulacre.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | sham |
| Language | French |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | \ʃæm\ |
| Letters | 4 |
| Frequency rank | #50,508 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “sham” sits in French frequency
Rare enough to double-check
sham is uncommon French at frequency #50,508 among 394,209 “S” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed \ʃæm\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.
No misspelling variants are generated for sham in our index, a sign its spelling follows regular French conventions. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
No documented word history exists for this headword, so its spelling pattern is best understood through pronunciation rather than a traceable origin. The correct French form is sham, spelled S-H-A-M.
Definition
- 1Simulacre.
- 2Imposture.
- 3Imposteur.
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
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Using “sham”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct French spelling is S-H-A-M - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as \ʃæm\ (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
Other uncommon French words near this rank
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.