defendervsdéfendezWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“defender” and “défendez” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#44,412
“defender” frequency rank
#29,738
“défendez” frequency rank
74150
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature defender défendez
Definition Défendre. Deuxième personne du pluriel de l’indicatif présent de défendre.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set defender and défendez apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
defender
8 ch
défendez

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. defender (\de.fenˈdeɾ\) 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 share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 74150, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

defender is recorded at frequency rank #44,412, classified as averb, pronounced \de.fenˈdeɾ\. 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 74150, this pair ranks #38,094 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of defender vs défendez

Shared letters: defn. Private to "defender": r. Private to "défendez": .

"defender" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC  ·  "défendez" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • defenderddefender · deefnder · defedner · defendder · defenderr · defenedr · defennder · deffender

Frequency comparison

defender#44,412
défendez#29,738

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "defender" and "défendez" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\de.fenˈdeɾ\ versus \de.fɑ̃.de\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "defender" or "défendez"?
"défendez" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #29,738 in our French list, against #44,412 for "defender". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering defender vs défendez

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “defender” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list