tenir ferme

\tə.niʁ fɛʁm\

/\tə.niʁ fɛʁm\/ verb

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

The verdict

“tenir ferme” is outside the top-ranked French vocabulary, used as a verb - the kind of word writers most often double-check.

Unranked
below top-frequency French
11
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Résister ; ne pas céder ; se défendre.

Key facts for tenir ferme
PropertyValue
Headwordtenir ferme
LanguageFrench
Part of speechVerb
IPA\tə.niʁ fɛʁm\
Letters11
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “tenir ferme” sits in French frequency

tenir ferme falls outside the top-100,000 ranked French words, the long-tail zone of technical, archaic, or low-frequency vocabulary, exactly where readers second-guess spellings most.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The French entry for tenir ferme is 11 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \tə.niʁ fɛʁm\. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. Wiktionary records 3 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for tenir ferme, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. No close-neighbour confusable shows up for this headword in our dataset, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

Wiktionary doesn't record an etymology for this headword, leaving phoneme-to-grapheme mapping as the best guide to its spelling rather than a borrowing history. The correct French form is tenir ferme, spelled T-E-N-I-R- -F-E-R-M-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Résister ; ne pas céder ; se défendre.
  2. 2
    Ne pas renoncer à, ne pas abandonner.
  3. 3
    Se tenir solidement

Synonyms

tenir bon

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "tenir ferme"?
"tenir ferme" is spelled T-E-N-I-R- -F-E-R-M-E. The IPA pronunciation is \tə.niʁ fɛʁm\.
What does "tenir ferme" mean?
As a verb, "tenir ferme" means: Résister ; ne pas céder ; se défendre.
How do you pronounce "tenir ferme"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "tenir ferme" is \tə.niʁ fɛʁm\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "tenir ferme" come from?
"tenir ferme" 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 “tenir ferme”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is T-E-N-I-R- -F-E-R-M-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \tə.niʁ fɛʁm\ (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
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