Which to use
“défendit” is a verb and “défendue” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #42,841
- “défendit” frequency rank
- #13,160
- “défendue” frequency rank
- 56001
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | défendit | défendue |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Troisième personne du singulier du passé simple de défendre. | Féminin singulier de défendu. |
Where the eye mixes défendit and défendue
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. défendit (CVCVCCVC) and défendue (CVCVCCVV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses défendit with défendue
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: défendit is \de.fɑ̃.di\ while défendue is \de.fɑ̃.dy\. 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 adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 56001, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
défendit is recorded at frequency rank #42,841, classified as averb, pronounced \de.fɑ̃.di\. défendue is at rank #13,160, tagged as anadj, pronounced \de.fɑ̃.dy\.
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 56001, this pair ranks #123,846 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of défendit vs défendue
Shared letters: defné. Private to "défendit": it. Private to "défendue": u.
"défendit" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC · "défendue" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVV
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "défendit" and "défendue" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "défendit" vs "défendue" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "défendit" and "défendue" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "défendit" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "défendue" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #123,846 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "défendit" and "défendue" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "defender vs défendit". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #123,846 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.