Which to use
“énervé” is an adjective and “énerver” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #9,258
- “énervé” frequency rank
- #10,619
- “énerver” frequency rank
- 19877
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | énervé | énerver |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Qui a subi le supplice de l’énervation. | Agacer en produisant une irritation nerveuse. |
Same sound, different letters: énervé vs énerver
Muted letters are shared; highlighted letters are the only spelling cue when pronunciation matches. Shared run: 5 letters. énervé runs 6 letters (VCVCCV) against énerver's 7 (VCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Same sound, different spelling - énervé / énerver
Say them out loud and nothing separates them: énervé and énerver carry the same recorded pronunciation, \e.nɛʁ.ve\. Grammar is what tells them apart: one is anadjective, the other averb, so most sentences will only accept one of them. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 19877, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
énervé is recorded at frequency rank #9,258, classified as anadj, pronounced \e.nɛʁ.ve\. énerver is at rank #10,619, tagged as averb, pronounced \e.nɛʁ.ve\.
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 19877, this pair ranks #371,087 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of énervé vs énerver
Shared letters: enrvé. Private to "énervé": -. Private to "énerver": -.
"énervé" · 6 letters · shape VCVCCV · "énerver" · 7 letters · shape VCVCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "énervé" and "énerver" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "énervé" vs "énerver" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
"énervé" and "énerver" share a sound, keep the gloss open, then jump to the headword or a nearby trap.
- Full dictionary entry for "énervé" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "énerver" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #371,087 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "énervé" and "énerver" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "énervent vs énerver". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #371,087 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.