tenure

\tə.nyʁ\

/\tə.nyʁ\/ noun

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

The verdict

“tenure” is uncommon French (frequency #81,628 among 164,488 “T” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#81,628
frequency rank, French
164,488
“T” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Terre concédée à une personne non noble par un seigneur, en retenant la propriété pour n’accorder que la jouissance précaire au concessionnaire.

Key facts for tenure
PropertyValue
Headwordtenure
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\tə.nyʁ\
Letters6
Frequency rank#81,628
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “tenure” 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). tenure 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

tenure is uncommon French at frequency #81,628 among 164,488 “T” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed \tə.nyʁ\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.

tenure doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

No borrowing history is documented for this entry, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct French form is tenure, spelled T-E-N-U-R-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Terre concédée à une personne non noble par un seigneur, en retenant la propriété pour n’accorder que la jouissance précaire au concessionnaire.
  2. 2
    Mode de possession d’une terre.
  3. 3
    Mouvance, dépendance d’un fief.
  4. 4
    Exploitation agricole en fermage.

Synonyms

tènementtenant

This word in other languages

tenure(English)

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 "tenure"?
"tenure" is spelled T-E-N-U-R-E. The IPA pronunciation is \tə.nyʁ\.
What does "tenure" mean?
As a noun, "tenure" means: Terre concédée à une personne non noble par un seigneur, en retenant la propriété pour n’accorder que la jouissance précaire au concessionnaire.
How do you pronounce "tenure"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "tenure" is \tə.nyʁ\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "tenure" come from?
"tenure" 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 “tenure”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is T-E-N-U-R-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \tə.nyʁ\ (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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list