unexpected

\ʌnɪkˈspɛktɪd\

/\ʌnɪkˈspɛktɪd\/ adj

The verdict

“unexpected” is uncommon French (frequency #86,284 among 456 “U” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#86,284
frequency rank, French
456
“U” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Inattendu.

Corpus desk

Index FR-unexpected · unexpected · French

unexpected · rank #86,284 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #86,284
  • LEN-MEGA 10 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 456
  • PHOTO-FINISH umi

Nearest frequency peer: umi (-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 « unexpected »

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 « unexpected » se situe face à des rangs français aussi rares.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for unexpected
PropertyValue
Headwordunexpected
LanguageFrench
Part of speechAdjective
IPA\ʌnɪkˈspɛktɪd\
Letters10
Frequency rank#86,284
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Longue queue: rang de « unexpected » en français

Cette échelle va du noyau du français courant (gauche) jusqu'à la traîne des formes rares (droite).unexpectedtombe 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: « umi » (#86,283), « unidos » (#86,285), « useful » (#86,286). Parmi 456 lemmes en « U », « unexpected » est au #86,284. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

unexpected is uncommon French at frequency #86,284 among 456 “U” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed \ʌnɪkˈspɛktɪd\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Inattendu.".

unexpected has no tracked misspelling variants, a straightforward case of a spelling with little room for common typos. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so its spelling is best read as a straightforward mapping from sound to letter. The correct French form is unexpected, spelled U-N-E-X-P-E-C-T-E-D.

Definition

  1. 1
    Inattendu.

Synonyms

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 "unexpected"?
"unexpected" is spelled U-N-E-X-P-E-C-T-E-D. The IPA pronunciation is \ʌnɪkˈspɛktɪd\.
What does "unexpected" mean?
As an adjective, "unexpected" means: Inattendu.
How do you pronounce "unexpected"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "unexpected" is \ʌnɪkˈspɛktɪd\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "unexpected" come from?
"unexpected" 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.

Similar French words by spelling shape

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

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked French headwords with 10 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list