détectevsdétectésWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#19,821
“détecte” frequency rank
#31,468
“détectés” frequency rank
51289
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature détecte détectés
Definition Première personne du singulier du présent de l’indicatif de détecter. Participe passé masculin pluriel de détecter.

Where the eye mixes détecte and détectés

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. détecte runs 7 letters (CVCVCCV) against détectés's 8 (CVCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

7 ch
détecte
8 ch
détectés

Why the eye confuses détecte with détectés

A purely visual mix-up. détecte (\de.tɛkt\) and détectés (\de.tɛk.te\) 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 51289, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

détecte is recorded at frequency rank #19,821, classified as averb, pronounced \de.tɛkt\. détectés is at rank #31,468, tagged as averb, pronounced \de.tɛk.te\.

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 51289, this pair ranks #156,165 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of détecte vs détectés

Shared letters: cdeté. Private to "détecte": -. Private to "détectés": s.

"détecte" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV  ·  "détectés" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "détecte" and "détectés" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\de.tɛkt\ versus \de.tɛk.te\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "détecte" or "détectés"?
"détecte" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #19,821 in our French list, against #31,468 for "détectés". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Eye-level mix-up between "détecte" and "détectés" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "détecte" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "détectés" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #156,165 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "détecte" and "détectés" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "détectés vs détestée". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #156,165 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list