vigil

\vi.ʒil\

/\vi.ʒil\/ adj

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

The verdict

“vigil” is uncommon French (frequency #90,295 among 148,117 “V” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#90,295
frequency rank, French
148,117
“V” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Variante archaïque de la forme adjectivale masculine vigile ^([1]) ^([2]) ^([3]) ^([4]).

Key facts for vigil
PropertyValue
Headwordvigil
LanguageFrench
Part of speechAdjective
IPA\vi.ʒil\
Letters5
Frequency rank#90,295
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “vigil” 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). vigil lands here:

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

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

Rare enough to double-check

vigil is uncommon French at frequency #90,295 among 148,117 “V” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed \vi.ʒil\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Variante archaïque de la forme adjectivale masculine vigile ^([1]) ^([2]) ^([3]) ^([4]).".

No generated misspelling entries exist for vigil in our index, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

Wiktionary doesn't record an etymology for this headword, so spelling patterns must be inferred from the word's phoneme-to-grapheme mapping rather than from a documented borrowing chain. The correct French form is vigil, spelled V-I-G-I-L.

Definition

  1. 1
    Variante archaïque de la forme adjectivale masculine vigile ^([1]) ^([2]) ^([3]) ^([4]).

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 "vigil"?
"vigil" is spelled V-I-G-I-L. The IPA pronunciation is \vi.ʒil\.
What does "vigil" mean?
As an adjective, "vigil" means: Variante archaïque de la forme adjectivale masculine vigile ^([1]) ^([2]) ^([3]) ^([4]).
How do you pronounce "vigil"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "vigil" is \vi.ʒil\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "vigil" come from?
"vigil" 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 “vigil”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is V-I-G-I-L - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \vi.ʒil\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Browse more French words and confusable pairs in the same reference. French words

Other uncommon French words near this rank

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