Which to use
“défunt” and “défunts” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #8,840
- “défunt” frequency rank
- #22,833
- “défunts” frequency rank
- 31673
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | défunt | défunts |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Décédé ; mort ; feu. | Masculin pluriel de défunt. |
Same sound, different letters: défunt vs défunts
Muted letters are shared; highlighted letters are the only spelling cue when pronunciation matches. Shared run: 6 letters. défunt runs 6 letters (CVCVCC) against défunts's 7 (CVCVCCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Same sound, different spelling - défunt / défunts
This is the hard kind. défunt and défunts are pronounced identically (\de.fœ̃\) 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) - “défunt” sits inside “défunts”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 31673, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
défunt is recorded at frequency rank #8,840, classified as anadj, pronounced \de.fœ̃\. défunts is at rank #22,833, tagged as anadj, pronounced \de.fœ̃\.
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 31673, this pair ranks #302,317 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of défunt vs défunts
Shared letters: dfntué. Private to "défunt": -. Private to "défunts": s.
"défunt" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC · "défunts" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "défunt" and "défunts" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "défunt" or "défunts"?
After this comparison
"défunt" and "défunts" share a sound, keep the gloss open, then jump to the headword or a nearby trap.
- Full dictionary entry for "défunt" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "défunts" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #302,317 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "défunt" and "défunts" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "décents vs défunts". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #302,317 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.