confusvsconfusesWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#10,296
“confus” frequency rank
#40,193
“confuses” frequency rank
50489
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature confus confuses
Definition Dont il est impossible de distinguer les éléments constitutifs. Féminin pluriel de confus.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set confus and confuses apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
confus
8 ch
confuses

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. confus (\kɔ̃.fy\) and confuses (\kɔ̃.fyz\) 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 extra letter(s) - “confus” sits inside “confuses”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 50489, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

confus is recorded at frequency rank #10,296, classified as anadj, pronounced \kɔ̃.fy\. confuses is at rank #40,193, tagged as anadj, pronounced \kɔ̃.fyz\.

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 50489, this pair ranks #162,221 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of confus vs confuses

Shared letters: cfnosu. Private to "confus": -. Private to "confuses": e.

"confus" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "confuses" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • confuscconfus · cnofus · cofnus · conffus · confsu · confuss · connfus · conufs
  • confusescconfuses · cnofuses · cofnuses · conffuses · confsues · confuess · confusess · confusses

Frequency comparison

confus#10,296
confuses#40,193

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "confus" and "confuses" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\kɔ̃.fy\ versus \kɔ̃.fyz\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "confus" or "confuses"?
"confus" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #10,296 in our French list, against #40,193 for "confuses". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering confus vs confuses

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 “confus” 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