Which to use
“détendre” is a verb and “détendu” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #8,538
- “détendre” frequency rank
- #19,527
- “détendu” frequency rank
- 28065
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | détendre | détendu |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Relâcher ce qui était tendu. | Lâche, non tendu. |
Where the eye mixes détendre and détendu
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. détendre runs 8 letters (CVCVCCCV) against détendu's 7 (CVCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: détendre vs détendu
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: détendre is \de.tɑ̃dʁ\ while détendu is \de.tɑ̃.dy\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 28065, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
détendre is recorded at frequency rank #8,538, classified as averb, pronounced \de.tɑ̃dʁ\. détendu is at rank #19,527, tagged as anadj, pronounced \de.tɑ̃.dy\.
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 28065, this pair ranks #325,121 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of détendre vs détendu
Shared letters: denté. Private to "détendre": r. Private to "détendu": u.
"détendre" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCCV · "détendu" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "détendre" for "détendu" ever safe?
In ordinary French text, does "détendre" or "détendu" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "détendre" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "détendu" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #325,121 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "détendre" and "détendu" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "détendu vs détendus". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #325,121 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.