énervesvsenlèvesTell them apart

Which to use

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

#31,792
“énerves” frequency rank
#26,352
“enlèves” frequency rank
58144
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature énerves enlèves
Definition Deuxième personne du singulier du présent de l’indicatif de énerver. Deuxième personne du singulier du présent de l’indicatif de enlever.

Where the eye mixes énerves and enlèves

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. énerves (VCVCCVC) and enlèves (VCCVCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

7 ch
énerves
7 ch
enlèves

Look-alike desk: énerves vs enlèves

A purely visual mix-up. énerves (\e.nɛʁv\) and enlèves (\ɑ̃.lɛv\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 58144, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

énerves is recorded at frequency rank #31,792, classified as averb, pronounced \e.nɛʁv\. enlèves is at rank #26,352, tagged as averb, pronounced \ɑ̃.lɛv\.

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 58144, this pair ranks #110,767 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of énerves vs enlèves

Shared letters: ensv. Private to "énerves": ré. Private to "enlèves": lè.

"énerves" · 7 letters · shape VCVCCVC  ·  "enlèves" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "énerves" and "enlèves" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently (\e.nɛʁv\ versus \ɑ̃.lɛv\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "énerves" vs "enlèves" - which ranks higher?
"enlèves" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #26,352 in our French list, against #31,792 for "énerves". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "énerves" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "enlèves" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #110,767 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "énerves" and "enlèves" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "endives vs énerves". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #110,767 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list