Which to use
“défaits” is an adjective and “défauts” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #32,789
- “défaits” frequency rank
- #5,124
- “défauts” frequency rank
- 37913
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | défaits | défauts |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Masculin pluriel de défait. | Pluriel de défaut. |
Where the eye mixes défaits and défauts
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. défaits and défauts follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCVVCC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Look-alike desk: défaits vs défauts
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: défaits is \de.fɛ\ while défauts is \de.fo\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - i in “défaits” becomes u in “défauts”, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 37913, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
défaits is recorded at frequency rank #32,789, classified as anadj, pronounced \de.fɛ\. défauts is at rank #5,124, tagged as anoun, pronounced \de.fo\.
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 37913, this pair ranks #259,084 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of défaits vs défauts
Shared letters: adfsté. Private to "défaits": i. Private to "défauts": u.
"défaits" · 7 letters · shape CVCVVCC · "défauts" · 7 letters · shape CVCVVCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "défaits" and "défauts" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary French text, does "défaits" or "défauts" show up more?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "défaits" and "défauts" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "défaits" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "défauts" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #259,084 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "défaits" and "défauts" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "défaits vs desdits". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #259,084 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.