commonvscommunsWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“common” and “communs” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#23,141
“common” frequency rank
#5,016
“communs” frequency rank
28157
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature common communs
Definition Commun. Masculin pluriel de commun.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set common and communs apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
common
7 ch
communs

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

common and communs form a confusable pair in the French index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 28157, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

common is recorded at frequency rank #23,141, classified as anadj, pronounced \ˈkɑ.mən\. communs is at rank #5,016, tagged as anadj, pronounced \kɔ.mœ̃\.

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 28157, this pair ranks #324,551 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Frequency comparison

common#23,141
communs#5,016

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "common" and "communs" be used interchangeably?
No, "common" and "communs" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering common vs communs

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “common” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list