Which to use
“défait” and “défunt” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #11,757
- “défait” frequency rank
- #8,840
- “défunt” frequency rank
- 20597
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | défait | défunt |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Qui est dénoué, déconstruit, mis dans un état inconvenable, désordonné. | Décédé ; mort ; feu. |
Where the eye mixes défait and défunt
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. défait (CVCVVC) and défunt (CVCVCC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between défait and défunt
A purely visual mix-up. défait (\de.fɛ\) and défunt (\de.fœ̃\) 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 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 20597, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
défait is recorded at frequency rank #11,757, classified as anadj, pronounced \de.fɛ\. défunt is at rank #8,840, tagged as anadj, pronounced \de.fœ̃\.
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 20597, this pair ranks #367,460 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of défait vs défunt
Shared letters: dfté. Private to "défait": ai. Private to "défunt": nu.
"défait" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC · "défunt" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "défait" for "défunt" ever safe?
Frequency check: "défait" vs "défunt" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "défait" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "défunt" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #367,460 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "défait" and "défunt" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "défunt vs démuni". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #367,460 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.