Which to use
“défenses” is a noun and “devenues” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #11,569
- “défenses” frequency rank
- #8,983
- “devenues” frequency rank
- 20552
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | défenses | devenues |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Pluriel de défense. | Participe passé féminin pluriel de devenir. |
Where the eye mixes défenses and devenues
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. défenses (CVCVCCVC) and devenues (CVCVCVVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between défenses and devenues
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: défenses is \de.fɑ̃s\ while devenues is \də.və.ny\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 20552, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
défenses is recorded at frequency rank #11,569, classified as anoun, pronounced \de.fɑ̃s\. devenues is at rank #8,983, tagged as averb, pronounced \də.və.ny\.
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 20552, this pair ranks #367,698 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of défenses vs devenues
Shared letters: dens. Private to "défenses": fé. Private to "devenues": uv.
"défenses" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC · "devenues" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- devenues ← ddevenues · deevnues · deveneus · devennues · devenuess · devenuse · deveunes · devneues
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "défenses" and "devenues" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "défenses" or "devenues"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "défenses" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "devenues" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #367,698 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "défenses" and "devenues" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "defender vs défenses". 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 #367,698 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.