spectre

\spɛktʁ\

/\spɛktʁ\/ noun

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

The verdict

“spectre” is a regularly-used French word, ranked #6,558 in French word frequency and used as a noun.

#6,558
frequency rank, French
7
letters
11
tracked misspellings
6
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Fantôme, apparition d’un mort.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

spectre vs spectres
88% similar
spectre vs spectrum
75% similar
spectre vs secte
71% similar

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

Key facts for spectre
PropertyValue
Headwordspectre
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\spɛktʁ\
Letters7
Frequency rank#6,558
Misspellings tracked11
Confusable pairs6
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “spectre” 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). spectre 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 spectre is 7 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \spɛktʁ\. Corpus data places it at rank #6,558 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 spectre, with forms such as "psectre", "sepctre", and "spcetre". 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 6 confusable-pair relationships, "spectres", "spectrum", "secte", and more, since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct French form is spectre, spelled S-P-E-C-T-R-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Fantôme, apparition d’un mort.
  2. 2
    Souvenir de personnes disparues.
  3. 3
    Évocation ou apparition effrayante.
  4. 4
    Personne hâve et maigre à faire peur.
  5. 5
    Chimère qu’on se forme dans l’esprit.
  6. 6
    Ensemble des rayonnements de différentes longueurs d’onde, qui résultent de la décomposition de la lumière par un prisme, d’un élément chimique à l’état excité, etc.
  7. 7
    Ensemble des valeurs propres d'un opérateur ou d'une matrice.
  8. 8
    Ensemble de choses assez semblables dont les variations sont déterminées.
  9. 9
    Ensemble des agents infectieux, contaminants ou pathogènes qui sont atteints par une substance curative.

This word in other languages

specter(English)fantasma(Español)Gespenst(Deutsch)fantasma(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: psectre,sepctre,spcetre,specctre,specrte,specter,spectrre,specttre,spetcre,sppectre,sspectre

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

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

psectre2sepctre2spcetre2specctre1specrte2specter2spectrre1specttre1
Edit distance from "spectre"

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 "spectre"?
"spectre" is spelled S-P-E-C-T-R-E. The IPA pronunciation is \spɛktʁ\.
What does "spectre" mean?
As a noun, "spectre" means: Fantôme, apparition d’un mort.
What words are commonly confused with "spectre"?
"spectre" is commonly confused with "spectres", "spectrum", "secte". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "spectre"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "spectre" is \spɛktʁ\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "spectre" come from?
"spectre" 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 “spectre”

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

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