Which to use
“défection” and “défections” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #23,525
- “défection” frequency rank
- #40,224
- “défections” frequency rank
- 63749
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | défection | défections |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Fait d’abandonner un organisme auquel on était lié. | Pluriel de défection. |
Same sound, different letters: défection vs défections
Muted letters are shared; highlighted letters are the only spelling cue when pronunciation matches. Shared run: 9 letters.
Homophone desk: défection vs défections
This is the hard kind. défection and défections are pronounced identically (\de.fɛk.sjɔ̃\) and both work as anoun. Neither the ear nor the grammar will rescue you; only the meaning does, so the glosses below are the whole decision. They differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “défection” sits inside “défections”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 63749, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
défection is recorded at frequency rank #23,525, classified as anoun, pronounced \de.fɛk.sjɔ̃\. défections is at rank #40,224, tagged as anoun, pronounced \de.fɛk.sjɔ̃\.
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 63749, this pair ranks #80,404 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of défection vs défections
Shared letters: cdefinoté. Private to "défection": -. Private to "défections": s.
"défection" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVVC · "défections" · 10 letters · shape CVCVCCVVCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "défection" for "défections" ever safe?
In ordinary French text, does "défection" or "défections" show up more?
Useful next steps
Sound matches; spelling doesn't. Use the exits below to lock the right form or check a cousin pair.
- Full dictionary entry for "défection" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "défections" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #80,404 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "défection" and "défections" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "défections vs déjections". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #80,404 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.