Which to use
“défendez” is a verb and “défenses” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #29,738
- “défendez” frequency rank
- #11,569
- “défenses” frequency rank
- 41307
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | défendez | défenses |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Deuxième personne du pluriel de l’indicatif présent de défendre. | Pluriel de défense. |
Where the eye mixes défendez and défenses
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. défendez and défenses follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVCVCCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses défendez with défenses
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: défendez is \de.fɑ̃.de\ while défenses is \de.fɑ̃s\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 41307, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
défendez is recorded at frequency rank #29,738, classified as averb, pronounced \de.fɑ̃.de\. défenses is at rank #11,569, tagged as anoun, pronounced \de.fɑ̃s\.
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 41307, this pair ranks #234,078 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of défendez vs défenses
Shared letters: defné. Private to "défendez": z. Private to "défenses": s.
"défendez" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC · "défenses" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "défendez" and "défenses" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "défendez" or "défenses"?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "défendez" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "défenses" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #234,078 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "défendez" and "défenses" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "defender vs défendez". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #234,078 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.