déchuevsdéçuConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#42,837
“déchue” frequency rank
#3,752
“déçu” frequency rank
46589
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature déchue déçu
Definition Féminin singulier de déchu. Qui a éprouvé une déception, qui a subi une situation inférieure à ses attentes.

Where the eye mixes déchue and déçu

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. déchue runs 6 letters (CVCCVV) against déçu's 4 (CVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

6 ch
déchue
4 ch
déçu

Look-alike desk: déchue vs déçu

A purely visual mix-up. déchue (\de.ʃy\) and déçu (\de.sy\) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 46589, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

déchue is recorded at frequency rank #42,837, classified as anadj, pronounced \de.ʃy\. déçu is at rank #3,752, tagged as anadj, pronounced \de.sy\.

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 46589, this pair ranks #193,728 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of déchue vs déçu

Shared letters: dué. Private to "déchue": ceh. Private to "déçu": ç.

"déchue" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVV  ·  "déçu" · 4 letters · shape CVCV

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "déchue" for "déçu" ever safe?
No. They are said differently (\de.ʃy\ versus \de.sy\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "déchue" vs "déçu" - which ranks higher?
"déçu" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,752 in our French list, against #42,837 for "déchue". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

After this comparison

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "déchue" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "déçu" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #193,728 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "déchue" and "déçu" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "dèche vs déchue". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #193,728 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list