Which to use
“débarquer” and “débusquer” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #10,312
- “débarquer” frequency rank
- #35,906
- “débusquer” frequency rank
- 46218
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | débarquer | débusquer |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tirer, ou faire sortir d’un navire, d’un bateau, ce qu’il contient. | Sortir quelqu’un ou quelque chose d’un bosquet, d’un bois, d’une forêt. |
Where the eye mixes débarquer and débusquer
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. débarquer and débusquer follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCVCCVVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Visual trap between débarquer and débusquer
A purely visual mix-up. débarquer (\de.baʁ.ke\) and débusquer (\de.bys.ke\) 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 46218, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
débarquer is recorded at frequency rank #10,312, classified as averb, pronounced \de.baʁ.ke\. débusquer is at rank #35,906, tagged as averb, pronounced \de.bys.ke\.
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 46218, this pair ranks #196,672 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of débarquer vs débusquer
Shared letters: bdeqrué. Private to "débarquer": a. Private to "débusquer": s.
"débarquer" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVVC · "débusquer" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "débarquer" for "débusquer" ever safe?
Frequency check: "débarquer" vs "débusquer" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "débarquer" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "débusquer" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #196,672 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "débarquer" and "débusquer" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "débusquer vs démasquer". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #196,672 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.