Which to use
“emprunt” is a noun and “emprunter” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #7,311
- “emprunt” frequency rank
- #6,612
- “emprunter” frequency rank
- 13923
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | emprunt | emprunter |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Action ou chose qu'on emprunte. | Demander et recevoir en prêt, obtenir à titre de prêt. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set emprunt and emprunter apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: emprunt is \ɑ̃.pʁœ̃\ while emprunter is \ɑ̃.pʁœ̃.te\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “emprunt” sits inside “emprunter”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 13923, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
emprunt is recorded at frequency rank #7,311, classified as anoun, pronounced \ɑ̃.pʁœ̃\. emprunter is at rank #6,612, tagged as averb, pronounced \ɑ̃.pʁœ̃.te\.
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 13923, this pair ranks #398,948 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of emprunt vs emprunter
Shared letters: emnprtu. Private to "emprunt": -. Private to "emprunter": -.
"emprunt" · 7 letters · shape VCCCVCC · "emprunter" · 9 letters · shape VCCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "emprunt" and "emprunter" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "emprunt" or "emprunter"?
Remembering emprunt vs emprunter
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “emprunt”; for a verb, it's “emprunter”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “emprunt” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable