définitifvsdéfinitifsTell them apart

Which to use

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

#7,309
“définitif” frequency rank
#23,844
“définitifs” frequency rank
31153
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature définitif définitifs
Definition Qui est réglé, fixé de manière qu’on n’y devra plus revenir. Masculin pluriel de définitif.

Same sound, different letters: définitif vs définitifs

Muted letters are shared; highlighted letters are the only spelling cue when pronunciation matches. Shared run: 9 letters.

9 ch
définitif
10 ch
définitifs

Ear matches; page differs - définitif and définitifs

This is the hard kind. définitif and définitifs are pronounced identically (\de.fi.ni.tif\) and both work as anadjective. Neither the ear nor the grammar will rescue you; only the meaning does, so the glosses below are the whole decision. They differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “définitif” sits inside “définitifs”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 31153, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

définitif is recorded at frequency rank #7,309, classified as anadj, pronounced \de.fi.ni.tif\. définitifs is at rank #23,844, tagged as anadj, pronounced \de.fi.ni.tif\.

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 31153, this pair ranks #305,633 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of définitif vs définitifs

Shared letters: dfinté. Private to "définitif": -. Private to "définitifs": s.

"définitif" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCVCVC  ·  "définitifs" · 10 letters · shape CVCVCVCVCC

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "définitif" for "définitifs" ever safe?
No. They are pronounced the same (\de.fi.ni.tif\), which is exactly why they get swapped in writing, but the dictionary meanings above are different, and pronunciation is no guide here.
In ordinary French text, does "définitif" or "définitifs" show up more?
"définitif" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #7,309 in our French list, against #23,844 for "définitifs". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

You've separated the homophone pair "définitif" / "définitifs". Follow the links when you need the full entry or a neighbour that trips the same ear.

  • Full dictionary entry for "définitif" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "définitifs" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #305,633 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "définitif" and "définitifs" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "définitifs vs définitives". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #305,633 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list