Which to use
“épater” and “épauler” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #38,616
- “épater” frequency rank
- #33,088
- “épauler” frequency rank
- 71704
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | épater | épauler |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Priver de l’usage d’une patte. | Blesser à l’épaule. |
Where the eye mixes épater and épauler
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. épater runs 6 letters (VCVCVC) against épauler's 7 (VCVVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses épater with épauler
A purely visual mix-up. épater (\e.pa.te\) and épauler (\e.po.le\) 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 71704, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
épater is recorded at frequency rank #38,616, classified as averb, pronounced \e.pa.te\. épauler is at rank #33,088, tagged as averb, pronounced \e.po.le\.
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 71704, this pair ranks #46,594 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of épater vs épauler
Shared letters: aepré. Private to "épater": t. Private to "épauler": lu.
"épater" · 6 letters · shape VCVCVC · "épauler" · 7 letters · shape VCVVCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "épater" and "épauler" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "épater" or "épauler"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "épater" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "épauler" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #46,594 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "épater" and "épauler" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "épater vs épier". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #46,594 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.