débitévsdébuteWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#41,236
“débité” frequency rank
#6,188
“débute” frequency rank
47424
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature débité débute
Definition Participe passé masculin singulier de débiter. Première personne du singulier de l’indicatif présent de débuter.

Where the spellings diverge

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

6 ch
débité
6 ch
débute

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. débité (\de.bi.te\) and débute (\de.byt\) 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 47424, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

débité is recorded at frequency rank #41,236, classified as averb, pronounced \de.bi.te\. débute is at rank #6,188, tagged as averb, pronounced \de.byt\.

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 47424, this pair ranks #187,071 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of débité vs débute

Shared letters: bdté. Private to "débité": i. Private to "débute": eu.

"débité" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV  ·  "débute" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV

Frequency comparison

débité#41,236
débute#6,188

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "débité" and "débute" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\de.bi.te\ versus \de.byt\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "débité" or "débute"?
"débute" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,188 in our French list, against #41,236 for "débité". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering débité vs débute

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 “débité” 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