Which to use
“épée” is a noun and “épicée” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #4,724
- “épée” frequency rank
- #40,088
- “épicée” frequency rank
- 44812
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | épée | épicée |
|---|---|---|
| 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. | Féminin singulier de épicé. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set épée and épicée apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: épée is \e.pe\ while épicée is \e.pi.se\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 44812, 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\. épicée is at rank #40,088, tagged as anadj, pronounced \e.pi.se\.
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 44812, this pair ranks #207,622 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of épée vs épicée
Shared letters: epé. Private to "épée": -. Private to "épicée": ci.
"épée" · 4 letters · shape VCVV · "épicée" · 6 letters · shape VCVCVV
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "épée" and "épicée" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "épée" or "épicée"?
Remembering épée vs épicée
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “épée”; for an adjective, it's “épicée”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “épée” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable