détenaient vs détenait, What's the Difference?

Which to use

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

#46,733
“détenaient” frequency rank: #25,295
“détenait” frequency rank: 72028
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	détenaient	détenait
Definition	Troisième personne du pluriel de l’imparfait de détenir.	Troisième personne du singulier de l’imparfait de détenir.

Where the spellings diverge

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

10 ch

détenaient

8 ch

détenait

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

This is the hard kind. détenaient and détenait are pronounced identically (\de.tə.nɛ\) and both work as averb. Neither the ear nor the grammar will rescue you; only the meaning does, so the glosses below are the whole decision. They differ by 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 72028, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

détenaient is recorded at frequency rank #46,733, classified as averb, pronounced \de.tə.nɛ\. détenait is at rank #25,295, tagged as averb, pronounced \de.tə.nɛ\.

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 72028, this pair ranks #45,461 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of détenaient vs détenait

Shared letters: adeinté. Private to "détenaient": -. Private to "détenait": -.

"détenaient" · 10 letters · shape CVCVCVVVCC · "détenait" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCVVC

Frequency comparison

détenaient#46,733

détenait#25,295

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "détenaient" and "détenait" be used interchangeably?

No. They are pronounced the same (\de.tə.nɛ\), which is exactly why they get swapped in writing, but the dictionary meanings above are different, and pronunciation is no guide here.

Which is more common, "détenaient" or "détenait"?

"détenait" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #25,295 in our French list, against #46,733 for "détenaient". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering détenaient vs détenait

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 “détenaient” entry
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