Which to use
“détend” and “détient” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #21,607
- “détend” frequency rank
- #7,432
- “détient” frequency rank
- 29039
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | détend | détient |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Troisième personne du singulier de l’indicatif présent de détendre. | Troisième personne du singulier de l’indicatif présent de détenir. |
Where the eye mixes détend and détient
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. détend runs 6 letters (CVCVCC) against détient's 7 (CVCVVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: détend vs détient
A purely visual mix-up. détend (\de.tɑ̃\) and détient (\de.tjɛ̃\) 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 29039, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
détend is recorded at frequency rank #21,607, classified as averb, pronounced \de.tɑ̃\. détient is at rank #7,432, tagged as averb, pronounced \de.tjɛ̃\.
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 29039, this pair ranks #319,114 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of détend vs détient
Shared letters: denté. Private to "détend": -. Private to "détient": i.
"détend" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC · "détient" · 7 letters · shape CVCVVCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "détend" and "détient" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "détend" or "détient"?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "détend" and "détient" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "détend" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "détient" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #319,114 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "détend" and "détient" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "détend vs détendus". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #319,114 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.