tout d’abord

\tu.da.bɔʁ\

/\tu.da.bɔʁ\/ adv

The verdict

“tout d’abord” is uncommon French (outside the top frequency list), classed as an adverb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency French
12
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Lors du premier contact.

Corpus desk

Index FR-tout-d-abord · tout d’abord · French

tout d’abord · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 12 letters
  • VOW-4 4 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.

Key facts for tout d’abord
PropertyValue
Headwordtout d’abord
LanguageFrench
Part of speechAdverb
IPA\tu.da.bɔʁ\
Letters12
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Longue queue: rang de « tout d’abord » en français

tout d’abordreste hors des 100.000 mots français les plus fréquents, dans la longue queue du vocabulaire technique, archaïque ou rare, là où le doute d'orthographe frappe.

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

Rare enough to double-check

tout d’abord is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anadverb, transcribed \tu.da.bɔʁ\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 4 senses are on record.

No generated misspelling entries exist for tout d’abord in our index, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable French rules. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so its spelling is easiest to reason about phoneme by phoneme, absent a documented history. The correct French form is tout d’abord, spelled T-O-U-T- -D-’-A-B-O-R-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    Lors du premier contact.
  2. 2
    Premièrement (dans un discours structuré).
  3. 3
    Avant tout, en priorité.
  4. 4
    Principalement.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how tout d’abord appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Durtal jugeait tout d’abord Mᵐᵉ Bavoil un peu toquée, regardait, tandis qu’elle débitait un passage de Jeanne de Matel sur saint Joseph, le prêtre qui ne bronchait point.
  2. Je présente le texte qui suit avec une quadruple ambition. Tout d'abord je souhaite que dans une certaine mesure il fasse le point des connaissances potamologiques acquises sur la Loire et ses tributaires.

Synonyms

This word in other languages

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 "tout d’abord"?
"tout d’abord" is spelled T-O-U-T- -D-’-A-B-O-R-D. The IPA pronunciation is \tu.da.bɔʁ\.
What does "tout d’abord" mean?
As an adverb, "tout d’abord" means: Lors du premier contact.
How do you pronounce "tout d’abord"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "tout d’abord" is \tu.da.bɔʁ\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "tout d’abord" come from?
"tout d’abord" is a French word. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for this and other words across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German on PlainSpell.
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.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list