Which to use
“épices” and “espèces” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #12,088
- “épices” frequency rank
- #1,864
- “espèces” frequency rank
- 13952
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | épices | espèces |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Émolument qui était dû aux juges pendant un procès. Forme elliptique de épices des juges. | Pluriel de espèce. |
Where the eye mixes épices and espèces
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. épices runs 6 letters (VCVCVC) against espèces's 7 (VCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses épices with espèces
A purely visual mix-up. épices (\e.pis\) and espèces (\ɛs.pɛs\) 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 13952, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
épices is recorded at frequency rank #12,088, classified as anoun, pronounced \e.pis\. espèces is at rank #1,864, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ɛs.pɛs\.
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 13952, this pair ranks #398,820 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of épices vs espèces
Shared letters: ceps. Private to "épices": ié. Private to "espèces": è.
"épices" · 6 letters · shape VCVCVC · "espèces" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "épices" and "espèces" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary French text, does "épices" or "espèces" show up more?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "épices" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "espèces" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #398,820 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "épices" and "espèces" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "épices vs épier". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #398,820 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.