Which to use
“épée” and “épi” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #4,724
- “épée” frequency rank
- #26,231
- “épi” frequency rank
- 30955
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | épée | épi |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Arme offensive et défensive composée d’une longue lame affilée de section triangulaire avec une poignée et que les guerriers portaient au côté dans un fourreau. | Partie du blé et de plusieurs autres plantes graminées, qui est placée au sommet de la tige, et formée par la réunion des graines. |
Where the eye mixes épée and épi
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: épée vs épi
A purely visual mix-up. épée (\e.pe\) and épi (\e.pi\) 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 30955, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
épée is recorded at frequency rank #4,724, classified as anoun, pronounced \e.pe\. épi is at rank #26,231, tagged as anoun, pronounced \e.pi\.
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 30955, this pair ranks #306,927 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of épée vs épi
Shared letters: pé. Private to "épée": e. Private to "épi": i.
"épée" · 4 letters · shape VCVV · "épi" · 3 letters · shape VCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "épée" and "épi" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "épée" vs "épi" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "épée" and "épi" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "épée" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "épi" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #306,927 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "épée" and "épi" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "épi vs épier". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #306,927 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.