Which to use
“défier” and “délier” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #12,556
- “défier” frequency rank
- #44,997
- “délier” frequency rank
- 57553
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | défier | délier |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Provoquer à une lutte, au duel. | Dégager de ce qui lie. |
Where the eye mixes défier and délier
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses défier with délier
A purely visual mix-up. défier (\de.fje\) and délier (\de.lje\) 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 a single letter - f in “défier” becomes l in “délier”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 57553, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
défier is recorded at frequency rank #12,556, classified as averb, pronounced \de.fje\. délier is at rank #44,997, tagged as averb, pronounced \de.lje\.
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 57553, this pair ranks #114,334 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of défier vs délier
Shared letters: deiré. Private to "défier": f. Private to "délier": l.
"défier" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC · "délier" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "défier" for "délier" ever safe?
Which is more common, "défier" or "délier"?
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 "défier" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "délier" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #114,334 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "défier" and "délier" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "délier vs déviée". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #114,334 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.