Which to use
“compétence” is a noun and “compétentes” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #4,057
- “compétence” frequency rank
- #17,099
- “compétentes” frequency rank
- 21156
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | compétence | compétentes |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Fonction attribuée par la loi à une autorité publique, à un établissement public. | Féminin pluriel de compétent. |
Where the eye mixes compétence and compétentes
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. compétence runs 10 letters (CVCCVCVCCV) against compétentes's 11 (CVCCVCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses compétence with compétentes
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: compétence is \kɔ̃.pe.tɑ̃s\ while compétentes is \kɔ̃.pe.tɑ̃t\. 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 (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 21156, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
compétence is recorded at frequency rank #4,057, classified as anoun, pronounced \kɔ̃.pe.tɑ̃s\. compétentes is at rank #17,099, tagged as anadj, pronounced \kɔ̃.pe.tɑ̃t\.
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 21156, this pair ranks #364,577 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of compétence vs compétentes
Shared letters: cemnopté. Private to "compétence": -. Private to "compétentes": s.
"compétence" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVCVCCV · "compétentes" · 11 letters · shape CVCCVCVCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "compétence" and "compétentes" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "compétence" or "compétentes"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "compétence" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "compétentes" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #364,577 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "compétence" and "compétentes" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "compétente vs compétentes". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #364,577 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.