Which to use
“défendons” and “demandons” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #30,574
- “défendons” frequency rank
- #8,690
- “demandons” frequency rank
- 39264
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | défendons | demandons |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Première personne du pluriel de l’indicatif présent de défendre. | Première personne du pluriel du présent de l’indicatif de demander. |
Where the eye mixes défendons and demandons
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses défendons with demandons
A purely visual mix-up. défendons (\de.fɑ̃.dɔ̃\) and demandons (\də.mɑ̃.dɔ̃\) 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 39264, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
défendons is recorded at frequency rank #30,574, classified as averb, pronounced \de.fɑ̃.dɔ̃\. demandons is at rank #8,690, tagged as averb, pronounced \də.mɑ̃.dɔ̃\.
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 39264, this pair ranks #249,286 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of défendons vs demandons
Shared letters: denos. Private to "défendons": fé. Private to "demandons": am.
"défendons" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVCC · "demandons" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- demandons ← ddemandons · deamndons · demadnons · demanddons · demandnos · demandonns · demandonss · demandosn
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "défendons" for "demandons" ever safe?
Which is more common, "défendons" or "demandons"?
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 "défendons" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "demandons" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #249,286 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "défendons" and "demandons" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "défendons vs descendons". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #249,286 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.