décernevsdécernéeWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#34,068
“décerne” frequency rank
#34,508
“décernée” frequency rank
68576
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature décerne décernée
Definition Première personne du singulier de l’indicatif présent de décerner. Participe passé féminin singulier de décerner.

Where the spellings diverge

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

7 ch
décerne
8 ch
décernée

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. décerne (\de.sɛʁn\) and décernée (\de.sɛʁ.ne\) 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 68576, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

décerne is recorded at frequency rank #34,068, classified as averb, pronounced \de.sɛʁn\. décernée is at rank #34,508, tagged as averb, pronounced \de.sɛʁ.ne\.

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 68576, this pair ranks #58,603 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of décerne vs décernée

Shared letters: cdenré. Private to "décerne": -. Private to "décernée": -.

"décerne" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV  ·  "décernée" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVV

Frequency comparison

décerne#34,068
décernée#34,508

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "décerne" and "décernée" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\de.sɛʁn\ versus \de.sɛʁ.ne\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "décerne" or "décernée"?
"décerne" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #34,068 in our French list, against #34,508 for "décernée". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering décerne vs décernée

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 “décerne” 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