épopéesvsépousesWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#48,284
“épopées” frequency rank
#14,832
“épouses” frequency rank
63116
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature épopées épouses
Definition Pluriel de épopée. Pluriel de épouse.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set épopées and épouses apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
épopées
7 ch
épouses

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. épopées (\e.pɔ.pe\) and épouses (\e.puz\) 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 63116, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

épopées is recorded at frequency rank #48,284, classified as anoun, pronounced \e.pɔ.pe\. épouses is at rank #14,832, tagged as anoun, pronounced \e.puz\.

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 63116, this pair ranks #83,667 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of épopées vs épouses

Shared letters: eopsé. Private to "épopées": -. Private to "épouses": u.

"épopées" · 7 letters · shape VCVCVVC  ·  "épouses" · 7 letters · shape VCVVCVC

Frequency comparison

épopées#48,284
épouses#14,832

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "épopées" and "épouses" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\e.pɔ.pe\ versus \e.puz\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "épopées" or "épouses"?
"épouses" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #14,832 in our French list, against #48,284 for "épopées". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering épopées vs épouses

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 “épopées” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list