détendusvsdétenuesWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#49,621
“détendus” frequency rank
#19,822
“détenues” frequency rank
69443
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature détendus détenues
Definition Masculin pluriel de détendu. Féminin pluriel de détenu.

Where the eye mixes détendus and détenues

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. détendus (CVCVCCVC) and détenues (CVCVCVVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

8 ch
détendus
8 ch
détenues

Visual trap between détendus and détenues

A purely visual mix-up. détendus (\de.tɑ̃.dy\) and détenues (\de.tə.ny\) 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 69443, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

détendus is recorded at frequency rank #49,621, classified as anadj, pronounced \de.tɑ̃.dy\. détenues is at rank #19,822, tagged as anadj, pronounced \de.tə.ny\.

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 69443, this pair ranks #55,088 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of détendus vs détenues

Shared letters: denstué. Private to "détendus": -. Private to "détenues": -.

"détendus" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC  ·  "détenues" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCVVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "détendus" and "détenues" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\de.tɑ̃.dy\ versus \de.tə.ny\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "détendus" vs "détenues" - which ranks higher?
"détenues" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #19,822 in our French list, against #49,621 for "détendus". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "détendus" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "détenues" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #55,088 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "détendus" and "détenues" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "détends vs détendus". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #55,088 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