vie

\vi\

/\vi\/ noun

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

The verdict

“vie” is in the everyday core of French, ranked #117 in French word frequency and used as a noun.

#117
frequency rank, French
3
letters
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Activité spontanée propre aux êtres organisés, qui se manifeste par les fonctions de nutrition et de reproduction, auxquelles s’ajoutent chez certains êtres les fonctions de relation et, chez l’êtr...

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

vie vs vu
33% similar
vie vs vs
33% similar
vie vs vo
33% similar

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

Key facts for vie
PropertyValue
Headwordvie
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\vi\
Letters3
Frequency rank#117
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “vie” 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). vie 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 vie is 3 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \vi\. Corpus data places it at rank #117 in overall French word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. Wiktionary records 15 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

vie has no tracked misspelling variants, a sign its spelling follows regular French conventions. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "vu", "vs", "vo", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

No documented word history exists 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 vie, spelled V-I-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Activité spontanée propre aux êtres organisés, qui se manifeste par les fonctions de nutrition et de reproduction, auxquelles s’ajoutent chez certains êtres les fonctions de relation et, chez l’être humain, la raison et le libre arbitre.
  2. 2
    Se dit de certaines activités de l’homme.
  3. 3
    Tout l'espace de temps qui s’étend depuis la naissance jusqu'à la mort.
  4. 4
    Conditions dans lesquelles une personne vient au monde et passe son existence.
  5. 5
    Ce qui regarde la nourriture et la subsistance.
  6. 6
    Ce qui regarde l’usage, les commodités ou les incommodités de la vie quotidienne.
  7. 7
    Fait de vivre.
  8. 8
    Façon de vivre.
  9. 9
    Les occupations et les activités différentes de la vie.
  10. 10
    Manière dont le monde se comporte.
  11. 11
    Biographie ; relation historique ou récit des faits remarquables et des traits caractéristiques de la vie d’un homme illustre.
  12. 12
    (avec une épithète) Criaillerie, querelle bruyante faite à quelqu’un.
  13. 13
    État propre aux êtres vivants. Ensemble des activités spontanées sur notre planète depuis leur commencement.
  14. 14
    Coût de la vie, cherté des denrées nécessaires à l’entretien des ménages.
  15. 15
    Foulard qu’on introduit dans son pantalon par derrière, et dont l’adversaire doit se saisir. Jeu correspondant.

Synonyms

existencearbre de viearbre phylogénétique

Antonyms

mort

This word in other languages

life(English)vida(Español)Leben(Deutsch)vida(Português)

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 "vie"?
"vie" is spelled V-I-E. The IPA pronunciation is \vi\.
What does "vie" mean?
As a noun, "vie" means: Activité spontanée propre aux êtres organisés, qui se manifeste par les fonctions de nutrition et de reproduction, auxquelles s’ajoutent chez certains êtres les fonctions de relation et, chez l’êtr...
What words are commonly confused with "vie"?
"vie" is commonly confused with "vu", "vs", "vo". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "vie"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "vie" is \vi\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "vie" come from?
"vie" 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 “vie”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is V-I-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \vi\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “vu” - see the side-by-side comparison. vie vs vu
  • 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