Which to use
“épine” is a noun and “exige” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #20,328
- “épine” frequency rank
- #4,858
- “exige” frequency rank
- 25186
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | épine | exige |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Branche, feuille, stipule ou partie de feuille transformée en un organe allongé et piquant ; par opposition à l’aiguillon. | Première personne du singulier du présent de l’indicatif de exiger. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set épine and exige apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
épine and exige form a confusable pair in the French index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 25186, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
épine is recorded at frequency rank #20,328, classified as anoun, pronounced \e.pin\. exige is at rank #4,858, tagged as averb, pronounced \ɛɡ.ziʒ\.
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 25186, this pair ranks #342,307 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "épine" and "exige" be used interchangeably?
Remembering épine vs exige
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “épine”; for a verb, it's “exige”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “épine” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable