désignervsdésigneraWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#5,127
“désigner” frequency rank
#45,574
“désignera” frequency rank
50701
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature désigner désignera
Definition Indiquer une personne ou une chose par des expressions, par des marques qui la font reconnaître. Troisième personne du singulier du futur de désigner.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set désigner and désignera apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
désigner
9 ch
désignera

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. désigner (\de.zi.ɲe\) and désignera (\de.zi.ɲə.ʁa\) 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 extra letter(s) - “désigner” sits inside “désignera”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 50701, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

désigner is recorded at frequency rank #5,127, classified as averb, pronounced \de.zi.ɲe\. désignera is at rank #45,574, tagged as averb, pronounced \de.zi.ɲə.ʁa\.

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 50701, this pair ranks #160,616 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of désigner vs désignera

Shared letters: deginrsé. Private to "désigner": -. Private to "désignera": a.

"désigner" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC  ·  "désignera" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVCV

Frequency comparison

désigner#5,127
désignera#45,574

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "désigner" and "désignera" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\de.zi.ɲe\ versus \de.zi.ɲə.ʁa\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "désigner" or "désignera"?
"désigner" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,127 in our French list, against #45,574 for "désignera". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering désigner vs désignera

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 “désigner” 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