Which to use
“défend” and “défendit” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,750
- “défend” frequency rank
- #42,841
- “défendit” frequency rank
- 46591
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | défend | défendit |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Troisième personne du singulier de l’indicatif présent de défendre. | Troisième personne du singulier du passé simple de défendre. |
Where the eye mixes défend and défendit
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. défend runs 6 letters (CVCVCC) against défendit's 8 (CVCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses défend with défendit
A purely visual mix-up. défend (\de.fɑ̃\) and défendit (\de.fɑ̃.di\) 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 “défendit”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 46591, 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\. défendit is at rank #42,841, tagged as averb, pronounced \de.fɑ̃.di\.
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 46591, this pair ranks #193,710 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of défend vs défendit
Shared letters: defné. Private to "défend": -. Private to "défendit": it.
"défend" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC · "défendit" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "défend" and "défendit" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary French text, does "défend" or "défendit" show up more?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "défend" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "défendit" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #193,710 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "défend" and "défendit" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "defender vs défendit". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #193,710 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.