Which to use
“contrôlaient” and “contrôlent” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #46,675
- “contrôlaient” frequency rank
- #14,233
- “contrôlent” frequency rank
- 60908
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | contrôlaient | contrôlent |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Troisième personne du pluriel de l’indicatif imparfait de contrôler. | Troisième personne du pluriel de l’indicatif présent de contrôler. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set contrôlaient and contrôlent apart are highlighted. They share 10 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
A purely visual mix-up. contrôlaient (\kɔ̃.tʁo.lɛ\) and contrôlent (\kɔ̃.tʁol\) 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 60908, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
contrôlaient is recorded at frequency rank #46,675, classified as averb, pronounced \kɔ̃.tʁo.lɛ\. contrôlent is at rank #14,233, tagged as averb, pronounced \kɔ̃.tʁol\.
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 60908, this pair ranks #95,156 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of contrôlaient vs contrôlent
Shared letters: celnortô. Private to "contrôlaient": ai. Private to "contrôlent": -.
"contrôlaient" · 12 letters · shape CVCCCVCVVVCC · "contrôlent" · 10 letters · shape CVCCCVCVCC
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "contrôlaient" and "contrôlent" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "contrôlaient" or "contrôlent"?
Remembering contrôlaient vs contrôlent
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 “contrôlaient” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable