Speakur

Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

ballon d'essai

/ˌbalɒ̃ dɛˈseɪ/

Word Rarity Very rare

Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.13 in modern English

Syllables
bal-lon d'es-sai
IPA
/ˌbalɒ̃ dɛˈseɪ/
15
Scrabble Score
12
Letters
3
Syllables
9
Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A policy put forward to test reactions; something designed to test the waters, an experimental measure.

Example Sentences

Etymology

Borrowed from French ballon d'essai.

Origin

Word Breakdown

Regional Pronunciation

  • British English: /ˌbalɒ̃ dɛˈseɪ/

Inflected Forms

ballons d'essai (plural)

Questions

How do you pronounce ballon d'essai?
The recorded pronunciation is /ˌbalɒ̃ dɛˈseɪ/.
What does ballon d'essai mean?
A policy put forward to test reactions; something designed to test the waters, an experimental measure.
Where does ballon d'essai come from?
It is traced to French.

How to pronounce ballon d'essai

  1. Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “ballon d'essai”.
  2. Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/ˌbalɒ̃ dɛˈseɪ/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
  3. Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “ballon d'essai”.
  4. Repeat and practice — Say “ballon d'essai” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.