Which to use
“ek” is a pronoun and “ép” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #42,851
- “ek” frequency rank
- #36,216
- “ép” frequency rank
- 79067
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ek | ép |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Pronom personnel sujet de la première personne du singulier : je. | Presser; pressurer; exprimer; fouler. |
Where the eye mixes ek and ép
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. No shared run - shape, not overlap, is the trap.
Visual trap between ek and ép
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: ek is \ɛk\ while ép is \ɛp˦˥\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (pronoun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 79067, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ek is recorded at frequency rank #42,851, classified as apron, pronounced \ɛk\. ép is at rank #36,216, tagged as averb, pronounced \ɛp˦˥\.
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 79067, this pair ranks #24,136 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of ek vs ép
Shared letters: none. Private to "ek": ek. Private to "ép": pé.
"ek" · 2 letters · shape VC · "ép" · 2 letters · shape VC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "ek" for "ép" ever safe?
Which is more common, "ek" or "ép"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "ek" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ép" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #24,136 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ek" and "ép" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ek vs EPO". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #24,136 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.