Which to use
“API” and “appli” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #18,115
- “API” frequency rank
- #7,521
- “appli” frequency rank
- 25636
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | API | appli |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Alphabet phonétique international. | Nom générique des objets qui servent à l’attelage des animaux de trait et de labourage, et à les attacher soit ensemble, soit dans les écuries, etc. |
Where the eye mixes API and appli
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between API and appli
A purely visual mix-up. API (\a.pi\) and appli (\a.pli\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 25636, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
API is recorded at frequency rank #18,115, classified as anoun, pronounced \a.pi\. appli is at rank #7,521, tagged as anoun, pronounced \a.pli\.
Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.
With a confusion score of 25636, this pair ranks #339,713 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of API vs appli
Shared letters: aip. Private to "API": -. Private to "appli": l.
"API" · 3 letters · shape VCV · "appli" · 5 letters · shape VCCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- appli ← apli · aplpi · appil · applli · papli
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "API" and "appli" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "API" vs "appli" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "API" and "appli" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "API" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "appli" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #339,713 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "API" and "appli" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "API vs aur". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #339,713 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.