Which to use
“épaisses” and “éparses” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #21,516
- “épaisses” frequency rank
- #38,116
- “éparses” frequency rank
- 59632
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | épaisses | éparses |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Féminin pluriel de épais. | Féminin pluriel de épars. |
Where the eye mixes épaisses and éparses
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. épaisses runs 8 letters (VCVVCCVC) against éparses's 7 (VCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses épaisses with éparses
A purely visual mix-up. épaisses (\e.pɛs\) and éparses (\e.paʁs\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 59632, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
épaisses is recorded at frequency rank #21,516, classified as anadj, pronounced \e.pɛs\. éparses is at rank #38,116, tagged as anadj, pronounced \e.paʁs\.
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 59632, this pair ranks #102,070 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of épaisses vs éparses
Shared letters: aepsé. Private to "épaisses": i. Private to "éparses": r.
"épaisses" · 8 letters · shape VCVVCCVC · "éparses" · 7 letters · shape VCVCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "épaisses" and "éparses" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "épaisses" or "éparses"?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "épaisses" and "éparses" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "épaisses" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "éparses" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #102,070 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "épaisses" and "éparses" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "épargnes vs éparses". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #102,070 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.