Which to use
“défendues” and “détendus” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #29,328
- “défendues” frequency rank
- #49,621
- “détendus” frequency rank
- 78949
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | défendues | détendus |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Féminin pluriel de défendu. | Masculin pluriel de détendu. |
Where the eye mixes défendues and détendus
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. défendues runs 9 letters (CVCVCCVVC) against détendus's 8 (CVCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between défendues and détendus
A purely visual mix-up. défendues (\de.fɑ̃.dy\) and détendus (\de.tɑ̃.dy\) 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 78949, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
défendues is recorded at frequency rank #29,328, classified as anadj, pronounced \de.fɑ̃.dy\. détendus is at rank #49,621, tagged as anadj, pronounced \de.tɑ̃.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 78949, this pair ranks #24,437 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of défendues vs détendus
Shared letters: densué. Private to "défendues": f. Private to "détendus": t.
"défendues" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVVC · "détendus" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "défendues" and "détendus" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary French text, does "défendues" or "détendus" 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 "défendues" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "détendus" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #24,437 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "défendues" and "détendus" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "détends vs détendus". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #24,437 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.