déchirervsdéchirureWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: déchirer is a verb, déchirure is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“déchirer” is a verb and “déchirure” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#14,661
“déchirer” frequency rank
#21,919
“déchirure” frequency rank
36580
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature déchirer déchirure
Definition Rompre en tirant avec force un côté en direction opposée de celle de l’autre. Rupture faite en déchirant, en se déchirant.

Where the spellings diverge

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

8 ch
déchirer
9 ch
déchirure

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: déchirer is \de.ʃi.ʁe\ while déchirure is \de.ʃi.ʁyʁ\. 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 (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 36580, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

déchirer is recorded at frequency rank #14,661, classified as averb, pronounced \de.ʃi.ʁe\. déchirure is at rank #21,919, tagged as anoun, pronounced \de.ʃi.ʁyʁ\.

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 36580, this pair ranks #268,608 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of déchirer vs déchirure

Shared letters: cdehiré. Private to "déchirer": -. Private to "déchirure": u.

"déchirer" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC  ·  "déchirure" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCVCV

Frequency comparison

déchirer#14,661
déchirure#21,919

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "déchirer" and "déchirure" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "déchirer" is a verb and "déchirure" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "déchirer" or "déchirure"?
"déchirer" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #14,661 in our French list, against #21,919 for "déchirure". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering déchirer vs déchirure

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “déchirer”; for a noun, it's “déchirure”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “déchirer” 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