Which to use
“détection” and “détective” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #9,988
- “détection” frequency rank
- #9,820
- “détective” frequency rank
- 19808
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | détection | détective |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Action de détecter un objet, un corps ou une substance à l’aide d’un appareil. | Agent de police employé à un service de recherches, dans les pays de langue anglaise. |
Where the eye mixes détection and détective
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: détection vs détective
A purely visual mix-up. détection (\de.tɛk.sjɔ̃\) and détective (\de.tɛk.tiv\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 19808, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
détection is recorded at frequency rank #9,988, classified as anoun, pronounced \de.tɛk.sjɔ̃\. détective is at rank #9,820, tagged as anoun, pronounced \de.tɛk.tiv\.
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 19808, this pair ranks #371,447 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of détection vs détective
Shared letters: cdeité. Private to "détection": no. Private to "détective": v.
"détection" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVVC · "détective" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "détection" and "détective" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "détection" or "détective"?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "détection" and "détective" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "détection" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "détective" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #371,447 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "détection" and "détective" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "défections vs détection". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #371,447 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.