Which to use
“épée” and “épis” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #4,724
- “épée” frequency rank
- #26,234
- “épis” frequency rank
- 30958
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | épée | épis |
|---|---|---|
| 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. | Pluriel de épi. |
Where the eye mixes épée and épis
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses épée with épis
A purely visual mix-up. épée (\e.pe\) and épis (\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 share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 30958, 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\. épis is at rank #26,234, 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 30958, this pair ranks #306,908 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of épée vs épis
Shared letters: pé. Private to "épée": e. Private to "épis": is.
"épée" · 4 letters · shape VCVV · "épis" · 4 letters · shape VCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "épée" and "épis" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "épée" vs "épis" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "épée" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "épis" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #306,908 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "épée" and "épis" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "épier vs épis". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #306,908 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.