sommité

\sɔ.mi.te\

/\sɔ.mi.te\/ noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

The verdict

“sommité” is uncommon French (frequency #67,121 among 394,209 “S” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#67,121
frequency rank, French
394,209
“S” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Partie la plus élevée de certaines choses.

Key facts for sommité
PropertyValue
Headwordsommité
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\sɔ.mi.te\
Letters7
Frequency rank#67,121
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “sommité” 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). sommité lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

sommité is uncommon French at frequency #67,121 among 394,209 “S” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed \sɔ.mi.te\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

No misspelling variants are generated for sommité in our index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so its spelling pattern is best understood through pronunciation rather than a traceable origin. The correct French form is sommité, spelled S-O-M-M-I-T-É.

Definition

  1. 1
    Partie la plus élevée de certaines choses.
  2. 2
    Extrémité de la tige fleurie de certaines plantes dont les fleurs sont trop petites pour être conservées isolément.
  3. 3
    Personne qui s'est élevée au sommet des dignités, de l’art ou des sciences.

This word in other languages

authority(English)sumidad(Español)sumidade(Português)

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 "sommité"?
"sommité" is spelled S-O-M-M-I-T-É. The IPA pronunciation is \sɔ.mi.te\.
What does "sommité" mean?
As a noun, "sommité" means: Partie la plus élevée de certaines choses.
How do you pronounce "sommité"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "sommité" is \sɔ.mi.te\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "sommité" come from?
"sommité" 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 “sommité”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is S-O-M-M-I-T-É - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \sɔ.mi.te\ (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.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list