Which to use
“épais” and “épave” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #7,019
- “épais” frequency rank
- #13,498
- “épave” frequency rank
- 20517
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | épais | épave |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Qui a une certaine mesure dans la dimension transversale. | Qui est égaré et dont on ne connaît pas le propriétaire. S’utilise surtout pour les animaux d’élevage. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set épais and épave apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
épais and épave form a confusable pair in the French index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 20517, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
épais is recorded at frequency rank #7,019, classified as anadj, pronounced \e.pɛ\. épave is at rank #13,498, tagged as anadj, pronounced \e.pav\.
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 20517, this pair ranks #367,873 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "épais" and "épave" be used interchangeably?
Remembering épais vs épave
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 “épais” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable