Which to use
“défend” and “défendez” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,750
- “défend” frequency rank
- #29,738
- “défendez” frequency rank
- 33488
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | défend | défendez |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Troisième personne du singulier de l’indicatif présent de défendre. | Deuxième personne du pluriel de l’indicatif présent de défendre. |
Where the eye mixes défend and défendez
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. défend runs 6 letters (CVCVCC) against défendez's 8 (CVCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: défend vs défendez
A purely visual mix-up. défend (\de.fɑ̃\) and défendez (\de.fɑ̃.de\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “défend” sits inside “défendez”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33488, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
défend is recorded at frequency rank #3,750, classified as averb, pronounced \de.fɑ̃\. défendez is at rank #29,738, tagged as averb, pronounced \de.fɑ̃.de\.
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 33488, this pair ranks #290,291 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of défend vs défendez
Shared letters: defné. Private to "défend": -. Private to "défendez": z.
"défend" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC · "défendez" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "défend" and "défendez" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "défend" vs "défendez" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "défend" and "défendez" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "défend" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "défendez" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #290,291 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "défend" and "défendez" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "defender vs défendez". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #290,291 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.