éclatavséclatantWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: éclata is a verb, éclatant is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“éclata” is a verb and “éclatant” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#32,645
“éclata” frequency rank
#22,740
“éclatant” frequency rank
55385
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature éclata éclatant
Definition Troisième personne du singulier du passé simple de éclater. Qui a de l’éclat.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set éclata and éclatant apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
éclata
8 ch
éclatant

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: éclata is \e.kla.ta\ while éclatant is \e.kla.tɑ̃\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “éclata” sits inside “éclatant”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 55385, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

éclata is recorded at frequency rank #32,645, classified as averb, pronounced \e.kla.ta\. éclatant is at rank #22,740, tagged as anadj, pronounced \e.kla.tɑ̃\.

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 55385, this pair ranks #127,790 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of éclata vs éclatant

Shared letters: aclté. Private to "éclata": -. Private to "éclatant": n.

"éclata" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCV  ·  "éclatant" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCVCC

Frequency comparison

éclata#32,645
éclatant#22,740

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "éclata" and "éclatant" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "éclata" is a verb and "éclatant" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "éclata" or "éclatant"?
"éclatant" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #22,740 in our French list, against #32,645 for "éclata". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering éclata vs éclatant

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “éclata”; for an adjective, it's “éclatant”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “éclata” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list