dansesvsdattesWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#9,466
“danses” frequency rank
#34,053
“dattes” frequency rank
43519
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature danses dattes
Definition Pluriel de danse. Pluriel de datte.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set danses and dattes apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
danses
6 ch
dattes

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. danses (\dɑ̃s\) and dattes (\dat\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 43519, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

danses is recorded at frequency rank #9,466, classified as anoun, pronounced \dɑ̃s\. dattes is at rank #34,053, tagged as anoun, pronounced \dat\.

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 43519, this pair ranks #217,444 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of danses vs dattes

Shared letters: ades. Private to "danses": n. Private to "dattes": t.

"danses" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "dattes" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • dansesadnses · daness · dannses · dansess · dansses · dasnes · ddanses · dnases
  • dattesadttes · datets · dattess · dattse · ddattes · dtates

Frequency comparison

danses#9,466
dattes#34,053

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "danses" and "dattes" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\dɑ̃s\ versus \dat\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "danses" or "dattes"?
"danses" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #9,466 in our French list, against #34,053 for "dattes". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering danses vs dattes

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 “danses” 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