soutenir

\sut.niʁ\

/\sut.niʁ\/ verb

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

The verdict

“soutenir” is a regularly-used French word, ranked #1,936 in French word frequency and used as a verb.

#1,936
frequency rank, French
8
letters
11
tracked misspellings
7
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Porter ; supporter ; maintenir.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

soutenir vs soutenu
75% similar
soutenir vs souvenir
88% similar
soutenir vs soutenue
75% similar

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

Key facts for soutenir
PropertyValue
Headwordsoutenir
LanguageFrench
Part of speechVerb
IPA\sut.niʁ\
Letters8
Frequency rank#1,936
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs7
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “soutenir” 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). soutenir 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 soutenir is 8 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \sut.niʁ\. Corpus data places it at rank #1,936 in overall French word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 9 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for soutenir, with forms such as "osutenir", "sotuenir", and "souetnir". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 7 confusable-pair relationships, "soutenu", "souvenir", "soutenue", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct French form is soutenir, spelled S-O-U-T-E-N-I-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    Porter ; supporter ; maintenir.
  2. 2
    Appuyer ; réconforter.
  3. 3
    Assurer, affirmer qu’une chose est vraie.
  4. 4
    Défendre, appuyer une opinion, une doctrine, etc.
  5. 5
    Supporter ou endurer sans découragement, sans trouble, quelque chose de fâcheux, d’inquiétant, de mortifiant, etc.
  6. 6
    Supporter, résister à une attaque, à quelque chose dont il est difficile de se défendre.
  7. 7
    Sustenter, donner de la force ; il se dit des aliments.
  8. 8
    Se tenir debout ; se tenir droit.
  9. 9
    Être porté, de manière à ne pas tomber ou s’enfoncer.

This word in other languages

support(English)stützen(Deutsch)suportar(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: osutenir,sotuenir,souetnir,souteinr,soutenirr,soutennir,soutenri,soutneir,souttenir,ssoutenir,suotenir

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

osutenir2sotuenir2souetnir2souteinr2soutenirr1soutennir1soutenri2soutneir2
Edit distance from "soutenir"

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 "soutenir"?
"soutenir" is spelled S-O-U-T-E-N-I-R. The IPA pronunciation is \sut.niʁ\.
What does "soutenir" mean?
As a verb, "soutenir" means: Porter ; supporter ; maintenir.
What words are commonly confused with "soutenir"?
"soutenir" is commonly confused with "soutenu", "souvenir", "soutenue". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "soutenir"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "soutenir" is \sut.niʁ\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "soutenir" come from?
"soutenir" 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 “soutenir”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is S-O-U-T-E-N-I-R - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \sut.niʁ\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “soutenu” - see the side-by-side comparison. soutenir vs soutenu
  • 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