veille

\vɛj\

/\vɛj\/ noun

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

The verdict

“veille” is a regularly-used French word, ranked #2,203 in French word frequency and used as a noun.

#2,203
frequency rank, French
6
letters
5
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - État du corps de l’homme ou de l’animal, dans lequel les sens sont en action.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

veille vs vile
67% similar
veille vs ville
83% similar
veille vs voile
67% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for veille
PropertyValue
Headwordveille
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\vɛj\
Letters6
Frequency rank#2,203
Misspellings tracked5
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “veille” 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). veille lands here:

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

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The French entry for veille is 6 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \vɛj\. Corpus data places it at rank #2,203 in overall French word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 10 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 5 likely wrong-spelling variants for veille, with forms such as "eville", "veile", and "veilel". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "vile", "ville", "voile", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

This entry carries no recorded etymology, so its spelling is best explained by sound-to-letter mapping rather than etymology. The correct French form is veille, spelled V-E-I-L-L-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    État du corps de l’homme ou de l’animal, dans lequel les sens sont en action.
  2. 2
    Action de veiller volontairement dans le temps habituellement consacré au sommeil.
  3. 3
    Veillée.
  4. 4
    Sentinelle, garde qui se fait pendant la nuit.
  5. 5
    État d'un dispositif technologique intermédiaire entre l'arrêt complet et le mode de fonctionnement normal, dans lequel la plupart des fonctions sont désactivées afin de diminuer la consommation énergétique.
  6. 6
    Grande et longue application qu’on donne à l’étude, aux productions de l’esprit ou aux grandes affaires, le plus souvent au détriment du sommeil.
  7. 7
    Une certaine partie de la nuit, dans la division qu’en faisaient les anciens.
  8. 8
    Jour qui précède un jour déterminé.
  9. 9
    Époque immédiatement antérieure.
  10. 10
    Activité qui consiste à étudier des informations stratégiques pour permettre d'anticiper des évènements.

Synonyms

hier

Antonyms

demainlendemainsommeil

This word in other languages

wake(English)vela(Español)Wache(Deutsch)vigília(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: eville,veile,veilel,velile,vveille

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of veille - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

eville2veile1veilel2velile2vveille1
Edit distance from "veille"

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 "veille"?
"veille" is spelled V-E-I-L-L-E. The IPA pronunciation is \vɛj\.
What does "veille" mean?
As a noun, "veille" means: État du corps de l’homme ou de l’animal, dans lequel les sens sont en action.
What words are commonly confused with "veille"?
"veille" is commonly confused with "vile", "ville", "voile". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "veille"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "veille" is \vɛj\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "veille" come from?
"veille" 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.

Using “veille”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is V-E-I-L-L-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \vɛj\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “vile” - see the side-by-side comparison. veille vs vile
  • Browse more French words and confusable pairs in the same reference. French words
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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list