dépendsvsdépensésWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#27,416
“dépends” frequency rank
#29,333
“dépensés” frequency rank
56749
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature dépends dépensés
Definition Première personne du singulier de l’indicatif présent de dépendre. Participe passé masculin pluriel de dépenser.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set dépends and dépensés apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
dépends
8 ch
dépensés

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. dépends (\de.pɑ̃\) and dépensés (\de.pɑ̃.se\) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 56749, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

dépends is recorded at frequency rank #27,416, classified as averb, pronounced \de.pɑ̃\. dépensés is at rank #29,333, tagged as averb, pronounced \de.pɑ̃.se\.

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 56749, this pair ranks #119,157 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of dépends vs dépensés

Shared letters: denpsé. Private to "dépends": -. Private to "dépensés": -.

"dépends" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCC  ·  "dépensés" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC

Frequency comparison

dépends#27,416
dépensés#29,333

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "dépends" and "dépensés" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\de.pɑ̃\ versus \de.pɑ̃.se\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "dépends" or "dépensés"?
"dépends" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #27,416 in our French list, against #29,333 for "dépensés". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering dépends vs dépensés

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 “dépends” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list