ternaire

\tɛʁ.nɛʁ\

/\tɛʁ.nɛʁ\/ adj

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

The verdict

“ternaire” is uncommon French (frequency #61,942 among 164,488 “T” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#61,942
frequency rank, French
164,488
“T” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Qui est composé de trois unités.

Key facts for ternaire
PropertyValue
Headwordternaire
LanguageFrench
Part of speechAdjective
IPA\tɛʁ.nɛʁ\
Letters8
Frequency rank#61,942
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “ternaire” 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). ternaire 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

ternaire is uncommon French at frequency #61,942 among 164,488 “T” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed \tɛʁ.nɛʁ\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 5 senses are on record.

No misspelling variants are generated for ternaire in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

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 ternaire, spelled T-E-R-N-A-I-R-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Qui est composé de trois unités.
  2. 2
    Qui résulte de la combinaison de trois corps simples en parlant de composé.
  3. 3
    Qui se divise par trois en parlant de mesure, de rythme.
  4. 4
    Qualifie un opérateur qui a pour résultat l’une ou l’autre de deux valeurs, selon qu’une condition est, ou non, vérifiée.
  5. 5
    Qui ne comporte que trois éléments ou ne propose que trois options, précisément, strictement et invariablement.

Synonyms

trinitaire

This word in other languages

ternary(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 "ternaire"?
"ternaire" is spelled T-E-R-N-A-I-R-E. The IPA pronunciation is \tɛʁ.nɛʁ\.
What does "ternaire" mean?
As an adjective, "ternaire" means: Qui est composé de trois unités.
How do you pronounce "ternaire"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "ternaire" is \tɛʁ.nɛʁ\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "ternaire" come from?
"ternaire" 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 “ternaire”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is T-E-R-N-A-I-R-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \tɛʁ.nɛʁ\ (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