décorevsdéféréWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#33,232
“décore” frequency rank
#37,775
“déféré” frequency rank
71007
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature décore déféré
Definition Première personne du singulier de l’indicatif présent de décorer. Participe passé masculin singulier de déférer.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set décore and déféré apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
décore
6 ch
déféré

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. décore (\de.kɔʁ\) and déféré (\de.fe.ʁe\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 71007, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

décore is recorded at frequency rank #33,232, classified as averb, pronounced \de.kɔʁ\. déféré is at rank #37,775, tagged as averb, pronounced \de.fe.ʁe\.

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 71007, this pair ranks #49,155 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of décore vs déféré

Shared letters: dré. Private to "décore": ceo. Private to "déféré": f.

"décore" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV  ·  "déféré" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV

Frequency comparison

décore#33,232
déféré#37,775

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "décore" and "déféré" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\de.kɔʁ\ versus \de.fe.ʁe\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "décore" or "déféré"?
"décore" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #33,232 in our French list, against #37,775 for "déféré". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering décore vs déféré

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 “décore” 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