Which to use
“commences” is a verb and “communes” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #9,800
- “commences” frequency rank
- #1,556
- “communes” frequency rank
- 11356
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | commences | communes |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Deuxième personne du singulier de l’indicatif présent de commencer. | Féminin pluriel de commun. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set commences and communes apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: commences is \kɔ.mɑ̃s\ while communes is \kɔ.myn\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 11356, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
commences is recorded at frequency rank #9,800, classified as averb, pronounced \kɔ.mɑ̃s\. communes is at rank #1,556, tagged as anadj, pronounced \kɔ.myn\.
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 11356, this pair ranks #409,468 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of commences vs communes
Shared letters: cemnos. Private to "commences": -. Private to "communes": u.
"commences" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC · "communes" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "commences" and "communes" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "commences" or "communes"?
Remembering commences vs communes
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “commences”; for an adjective, it's “communes”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “commences” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable