dérapervsdernierWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: déraper is a verb, dernier is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“déraper” is a verb and “dernier” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#38,772
“déraper” frequency rank
#279
“dernier” frequency rank
39051
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature déraper dernier
Definition Quitter prise sur le fond en parlant d’une ancre, ce qui a pour effet de faire dériver le navire. Dans un ensemble trié, l’élément qui arrive après tous les autres.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set déraper and dernier apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
déraper
7 ch
dernier

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: déraper is \de.ʁa.pe\ while dernier is \dɛʁ.nje\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39051, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

déraper is recorded at frequency rank #38,772, classified as averb, pronounced \de.ʁa.pe\. dernier is at rank #279, tagged as anadj, pronounced \dɛʁ.nje\.

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 39051, this pair ranks #250,862 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of déraper vs dernier

Shared letters: der. Private to "déraper": apé. Private to "dernier": in.

"déraper" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC  ·  "dernier" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • dernierddernier · denrier · deriner · derneir · dernierr · dernire · dernnier · derrnier

Frequency comparison

déraper#38,772
dernier#279

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "déraper" and "dernier" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "déraper" is a verb and "dernier" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "déraper" or "dernier"?
"dernier" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #279 in our French list, against #38,772 for "déraper". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering déraper vs dernier

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “déraper”; for an adjective, it's “dernier”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “déraper” 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