Which to use
“défend” and “déféré” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,750
- “défend” frequency rank
- #37,775
- “déféré” frequency rank
- 41525
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | défend | déféré |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Troisième personne du singulier de l’indicatif présent de défendre. | Participe passé masculin singulier de déférer. |
Where the eye mixes défend and déféré
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. défend (CVCVCC) and déféré (CVCVCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses défend with déféré
A purely visual mix-up. défend (\de.fɑ̃\) and déféré (\de.fe.ʁe\) 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 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 41525, 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\. déféré is at rank #37,775, tagged as averb, pronounced \de.fe.ʁe\.
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 41525, this pair ranks #232,457 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of défend vs déféré
Shared letters: dfé. Private to "défend": en. Private to "déféré": r.
"défend" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC · "déféré" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "défend" for "déféré" ever safe?
Which is more common, "défend" or "déféré"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "défend" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "déféré" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #232,457 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "défend" and "déféré" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "décèle vs déféré". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #232,457 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.