zazen

\za.zɛn\

/\za.zɛn\/ noun

The verdict

“zazen” is uncommon French (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency French
5
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Forme de méditation assise et silencieuse, à la base de la pratique du bouddhisme zen. Dans le zen soto, elle consiste à laisser passer les pensées sans les entretenir, s’affranchissant ainsi des f...

Corpus desk

Index FR-zazen · zazen · French

zazen · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MID 5 letters
  • VOW-2 2 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "Z" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

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.

Key facts for zazen
PropertyValue
Headwordzazen
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\za.zɛn\
Letters5
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Longue queue: rang de « zazen » en français

zazenreste hors des 100.000 mots français les plus fréquents, dans la longue queue du vocabulaire technique, archaïque ou rare, là où le doute d'orthographe frappe.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

zazen is uncommon French outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed \za.zɛn\. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

The misspelling generator found no plausible variants for zazen, suggesting the orthography follows predictable French patterns. It is not paired with a close-neighbour confusable in our dataset, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct French form is zazen, spelled Z-A-Z-E-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    Forme de méditation assise et silencieuse, à la base de la pratique du bouddhisme zen. Dans le zen soto, elle consiste à laisser passer les pensées sans les entretenir, s’affranchissant ainsi des fabrications mentales pour n’être plus que simple présence.
  2. 2
    Par extension, posture assise utilisée pour pratiquer ce type de méditation.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

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

  1. Le zazen dont il est question ici se situe au sein de la transmission de l’enseignement du Bouddha dont il constitue la pratique essentielle.
  2. La posture de zazen est semblable à un instrument de musique.

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "zazen"?
"zazen" is spelled Z-A-Z-E-N. The IPA pronunciation is \za.zɛn\.
What does "zazen" mean?
As a noun, "zazen" means: Forme de méditation assise et silencieuse, à la base de la pratique du bouddhisme zen. Dans le zen soto, elle consiste à laisser passer les pensées sans les entretenir, s’affranchissant ainsi des f...
How do you pronounce "zazen"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "zazen" is \za.zɛn\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "zazen" come from?
"zazen" is a French word. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for this and other words across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German on PlainSpell.
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.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list