défilésvsdevisesWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“défilés” and “devises” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#19,266
“défilés” frequency rank
#13,152
“devises” frequency rank
32418
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature défilés devises
Definition Pluriel de défilé. Pluriel de devise.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set défilés and devises apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
défilés
7 ch
devises

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. défilés (\de.fi.le\) and devises (\də.viz\) 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 4 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32418, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

défilés is recorded at frequency rank #19,266, classified as anoun, pronounced \de.fi.le\. devises is at rank #13,152, tagged as anoun, pronounced \də.viz\.

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 32418, this pair ranks #297,431 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of défilés vs devises

Shared letters: dis. Private to "défilés": flé. Private to "devises": ev.

"défilés" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC  ·  "devises" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • devisesddevises · deivses · deviess · devisess · devisses · devsies · devvises · dveises

Frequency comparison

défilés#19,266
devises#13,152

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "défilés" and "devises" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\de.fi.le\ versus \də.viz\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "défilés" or "devises"?
"devises" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #13,152 in our French list, against #19,266 for "défilés". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering défilés vs devises

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “défilés” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list