déçuvsdenWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: déçu is a adjective, den is an article, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“déçu” is an adjective and “den” is an article - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#3,752
“déçu” frequency rank
#9,639
“den” frequency rank
13391
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature déçu den
Definition Qui a éprouvé une déception, qui a subi une situation inférieure à ses attentes. Accusatif masculin singulier de der.

Where the eye mixes déçu and den

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.

4 ch
déçu
3 ch
den

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: déçu is \de.sy\ while den is \deːn\. 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 (adjective vs article), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 13391, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

déçu is recorded at frequency rank #3,752, classified as anadj, pronounced \de.sy\. den is at rank #9,639, tagged as anarticle, pronounced \deːn\.

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 13391, this pair ranks #401,206 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of déçu vs den

Shared letters: d. Private to "déçu": uçé. Private to "den": en.

"déçu" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "den" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "déçu" and "den" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "déçu" is an adjective and "den" an article, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "déçu" or "den"?
"déçu" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,752 in our French list, against #9,639 for "den". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list