Which to use
“déplaise” and “déplaît” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #20,430
- “déplaise” frequency rank
- #23,189
- “déplaît” frequency rank
- 43619
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | déplaise | déplaît |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Première personne du singulier du présent du subjonctif de déplaire. | Troisième personne du singulier de l’indicatif présent de déplaire. |
Where the eye mixes déplaise and déplaît
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. déplaise runs 8 letters (CVCCVVCV) against déplaît's 7 (CVCCVVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: déplaise vs déplaît
A purely visual mix-up. déplaise (\de.plɛz\) and déplaît (\de.plɛ\) 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 43619, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
déplaise is recorded at frequency rank #20,430, classified as averb, pronounced \de.plɛz\. déplaît is at rank #23,189, tagged as averb, pronounced \de.plɛ\.
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 43619, this pair ranks #216,678 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of déplaise vs déplaît
Shared letters: adlpé. Private to "déplaise": eis. Private to "déplaît": tî.
"déplaise" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVVCV · "déplaît" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "déplaise" and "déplaît" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "déplaise" or "déplaît"?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "déplaise" and "déplaît" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "déplaise" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "déplaît" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #216,678 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "déplaise" and "déplaît" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "déplaît vs déposait". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #216,678 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.