épicerie vs épiceries, What's the Difference?

Which to use

“épicerie” and “épiceries” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#9,102
“épicerie” frequency rank: #24,826
“épiceries” frequency rank: 33928
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	épicerie	épiceries
Definition	Commerce des épices et d’un grand nombre de denrées de consommation courante.	Pluriel de épicerie.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set épicerie and épiceries apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch

épicerie

9 ch

épiceries

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

This is the hard kind. épicerie and épiceries are pronounced identically (\e.pi.sʁi\) and both work as anoun. Neither the ear nor the grammar will rescue you; only the meaning does, so the glosses below are the whole decision. They differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “épicerie” sits inside “épiceries”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33928, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

épicerie is recorded at frequency rank #9,102, classified as anoun, pronounced \e.pi.sʁi\. épiceries is at rank #24,826, tagged as anoun, pronounced \e.pi.sʁi\.

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 33928, this pair ranks #287,328 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of épicerie vs épiceries

Shared letters: ceipré. Private to "épicerie": -. Private to "épiceries": s.

"épicerie" · 8 letters · shape VCVCVCVV · "épiceries" · 9 letters · shape VCVCVCVVC

Frequency comparison

épicerie#9,102

épiceries#24,826

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "épicerie" and "épiceries" be used interchangeably?

No. They are pronounced the same (\e.pi.sʁi\), which is exactly why they get swapped in writing, but the dictionary meanings above are different, and pronunciation is no guide here.

Which is more common, "épicerie" or "épiceries"?

"épicerie" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #9,102 in our French list, against #24,826 for "épiceries". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering épicerie vs épiceries

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “épicerie” entry
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