tergiversation
\tɛʁ.ʒi.vɛʁ.sa.sjɔ̃\
The verdict
“tergiversation” is uncommon French (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency French
- 14
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Action de tergiverser, d'hésiter.
Corpus desk
Index FR-tergiversation · tergiversation · French
tergiversation · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-MEGA 14 letters
- VOW-6 6 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "T" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | tergiversation |
| Language | French |
| Part of speech | Noun |
| IPA | \tɛʁ.ʒi.vɛʁ.sa.sjɔ̃\ |
| Letters | 14 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Longue queue: rang de « tergiversation » en français
Rare enough to double-check
tergiversation is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed \tɛʁ.ʒi.vɛʁ.sa.sjɔ̃\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Action de tergiverser, d'hésiter.".
No generated misspelling entries exist for tergiversation in our index, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.
Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct French form is tergiversation, spelled T-E-R-G-I-V-E-R-S-A-T-I-O-N.
Definition
- 1Action de tergiverser, d'hésiter.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how tergiversation appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
Les Américains s’étaient rendu compte du prix que leur coûteraient leurs tergiversations, et ils voulurent frapper un grand coup, de toutes leurs forces, […].
Lorsque nous devons prendre une décision face à une situation imprévue qui évolue très rapidement et n’autorise pas de tergiversations, notre comportement spontané est l’expression de notre état intérieur.
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.