Which to use
“énigme” is a noun and “érige” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #12,087
- “énigme” frequency rank
- #35,347
- “érige” frequency rank
- 47434
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | énigme | érige |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Jeu d’esprit mettant à l’épreuve la réflexion de l’interlocuteur qui doit répondre à une interrogation dont le sens est caché sous une parabole ou une métaphore. | Première personne du singulier du présent de l’indicatif de ériger. |
Where the eye mixes énigme and érige
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. énigme runs 6 letters (VCVCCV) against érige's 5 (VCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses énigme with érige
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: énigme is \e.niɡm\ while érige is \e.ʁiʒ\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 47434, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
énigme is recorded at frequency rank #12,087, classified as anoun, pronounced \e.niɡm\. érige is at rank #35,347, tagged as averb, pronounced \e.ʁiʒ\.
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 47434, this pair ranks #186,977 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of énigme vs érige
Shared letters: egié. Private to "énigme": mn. Private to "érige": r.
"énigme" · 6 letters · shape VCVCCV · "érige" · 5 letters · shape VCVCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "énigme" and "érige" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary French text, does "énigme" or "érige" show up more?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "énigme" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "érige" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #186,977 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "énigme" and "érige" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Erick vs érige". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #186,977 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.