tuf

\tyf\

/\tyf\/ noun

The verdict

“tuf” is uncommon French (frequency #53,042 among 3,703 “T” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#53,042
frequency rank, French
3,703
“T” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Roche formée par l’accumulation de petits fragments soit de roches volcaniques et de cendres, soit de calcaire.

Corpus desk

Index FR-tuf · tuf · French

tuf · rank #53,042 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #53,042
  • LEN-MID 3 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 3,703
  • PHOTO-FINISH tsars

Nearest frequency peer: tsars (-1 rank slots)

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.

Rangs de longue queue près de « tuf »

Bande clairsemée: les barres inversent le rang pour que le rare se lise plus court

corpus weight

What this shows Vue de longue queue: où « tuf » se situe face à des rangs français aussi rares.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for tuf
PropertyValue
Headwordtuf
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\tyf\
Letters3
Frequency rank#53,042
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Longue queue: rang de « tuf » en français

Cette échelle va du noyau du français courant (gauche) jusqu'à la traîne des formes rares (droite).tuftombe dans cette queue de rareté:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

L'axe est logarithmique: chaque tic marque environ dix fois moins de fréquence. Voisins rares de la même bande: « tsars » (#53,041), « twitté » (#53,043), « troqué » (#53,040). Parmi 3,703 lemmes en « T », « tuf » est au #53,042. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

tuf is uncommon French at frequency #53,042 among 3,703 “T” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed \tyf\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 3 senses are on record.

Zero misspellings are on record for tuf in our index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. Our dataset records no confusable match here, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct French form is tuf, spelled T-U-F.

Definition

  1. 1
    Roche formée par l’accumulation de petits fragments soit de roches volcaniques et de cendres, soit de calcaire.
  2. 2
    Pierre calcaire blanche et tendre, qui devient plus dure et plus blanche lorsqu’elle est employée.
  3. 3
    Fond véritable et imparfait de quelque chose ou de quelqu’un, caché sous de belles apparences.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Dix-sept îles, tufs et basaltes en amas pyramidaux ou étrangement déchiquetés, surgissent de la mer ; piliers immenses, elles supportent les brumes hautes, à moins que, monolithes gigantesques, leurs sommets ne les dominent.
  2. La plupart des maisons de la vallée de la Loire entre Blois et Saumur sont bâties en tuf.

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); 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 "tuf"?
"tuf" is spelled T-U-F. The IPA pronunciation is \tyf\.
What does "tuf" mean?
As a noun, "tuf" means: Roche formée par l’accumulation de petits fragments soit de roches volcaniques et de cendres, soit de calcaire.
How do you pronounce "tuf"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "tuf" is \tyf\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "tuf" come from?
"tuf" 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.

Similar French words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "tuf", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked French headwords with 3 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list