débordentvsdécorentWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#31,454
“débordent” frequency rank
#48,459
“décorent” frequency rank
79913
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature débordent décorent
Definition Troisième personne du pluriel de l’indicatif présent de déborder. Troisième personne du pluriel de l’indicatif présent de décorer.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set débordent and décorent apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch
débordent
8 ch
décorent

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. débordent (\de.bɔʁd\) and décorent (\de.kɔʁ\) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 79913, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

débordent is recorded at frequency rank #31,454, classified as averb, pronounced \de.bɔʁd\. décorent is at rank #48,459, tagged as averb, pronounced \de.kɔʁ\.

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 79913, this pair ranks #22,169 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of débordent vs décorent

Shared letters: denorté. Private to "débordent": b. Private to "décorent": c.

"débordent" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVCC  ·  "décorent" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCVCC

Frequency comparison

débordent#31,454
décorent#48,459

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "débordent" and "décorent" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\de.bɔʁd\ versus \de.kɔʁ\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "débordent" or "décorent"?
"débordent" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #31,454 in our French list, against #48,459 for "décorent". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering débordent vs décorent

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 “débordent” 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