Which to use
“décale” is a noun and “décolle” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #34,506
- “décale” frequency rank
- #18,725
- “décolle” frequency rank
- 53231
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | décale | décolle |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Sortie de l’école pour les vacances. | Première personne du singulier de l’indicatif présent de décoller. |
Where the eye mixes décale and décolle
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. décale runs 6 letters (CVCVCV) against décolle's 7 (CVCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses décale with décolle
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: décale is \de.kal\ while décolle is \de.kɔl\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 53231, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
décale is recorded at frequency rank #34,506, classified as anoun, pronounced \de.kal\. décolle is at rank #18,725, tagged as averb, pronounced \de.kɔl\.
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 53231, this pair ranks #142,178 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of décale vs décolle
Shared letters: cdelé. Private to "décale": a. Private to "décolle": o.
"décale" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV · "décolle" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "décale" for "décolle" ever safe?
Which is more common, "décale" or "décolle"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "décale" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "décolle" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #142,178 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "décale" and "décolle" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "décale vs décimale". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #142,178 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.