élancevsélancerWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#26,933
“élance” frequency rank
#34,818
“élancer” frequency rank
61751
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature élance élancer
Definition Première personne du singulier du présent de l’indicatif de élancer. Se lancer en avant avec impétuosité.

Where the spellings diverge

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

6 ch
élance
7 ch
élancer

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. élance (\e.lɑ̃s\) and élancer (\e.lɑ̃.se\) 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 extra letter(s) - “élance” sits inside “élancer”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 61751, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

élance is recorded at frequency rank #26,933, classified as averb, pronounced \e.lɑ̃s\. élancer is at rank #34,818, tagged as averb, pronounced \e.lɑ̃.se\.

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 61751, this pair ranks #90,642 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of élance vs élancer

Shared letters: acelné. Private to "élance": -. Private to "élancer": r.

"élance" · 6 letters · shape VCVCCV  ·  "élancer" · 7 letters · shape VCVCCVC

Frequency comparison

élance#26,933
élancer#34,818

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "élance" and "élancer" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\e.lɑ̃s\ versus \e.lɑ̃.se\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "élance" or "élancer"?
"élance" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #26,933 in our French list, against #34,818 for "élancer". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering élance vs élancer

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “élance” 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