Which to use
“décaler” and “décoller” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #25,977
- “décaler” frequency rank
- #12,771
- “décoller” frequency rank
- 38748
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | décaler | décoller |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Enlever la cale à ; changer l’équilibre, l’aplomb. | Séparer, détacher une chose qui était collée. |
Where the eye mixes décaler and décoller
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. décaler runs 7 letters (CVCVCVC) against décoller's 8 (CVCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between décaler and décoller
A purely visual mix-up. décaler (\de.ka.le\) and décoller (\de.kɔ.le\) 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 38748, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
décaler is recorded at frequency rank #25,977, classified as averb, pronounced \de.ka.le\. décoller is at rank #12,771, tagged as averb, pronounced \de.kɔ.le\.
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 38748, this pair ranks #253,087 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of décaler vs décoller
Shared letters: cdelré. Private to "décaler": a. Private to "décoller": o.
"décaler" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC · "décoller" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "décaler" and "décoller" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "décaler" or "décoller"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "décaler" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "décoller" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #253,087 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "décaler" and "décoller" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "décaler vs décèle". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #253,087 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.