Which to use
“défendent” and “défendit” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #9,647
- “défendent” frequency rank
- #42,841
- “défendit” frequency rank
- 52488
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | défendent | défendit |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Troisième personne du pluriel du présent de l’indicatif de défendre. | Troisième personne du singulier du passé simple de défendre. |
Where the eye mixes défendent and défendit
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. défendent runs 9 letters (CVCVCCVCC) 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 défendent with défendit
A purely visual mix-up. défendent (\de.fɑ̃d\) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 52488, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
défendent is recorded at frequency rank #9,647, classified as averb, pronounced \de.fɑ̃d\. 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 52488, this pair ranks #147,379 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of défendent vs défendit
Shared letters: defnté. Private to "défendent": -. Private to "défendit": i.
"défendent" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVCC · "défendit" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "défendent" and "défendit" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary French text, does "défendent" or "défendit" show up more?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "défendent" 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 #147,379 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "défendent" and "défendit" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "defender vs défendit". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #147,379 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.