Which to use
“épouses” and “excuses” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #14,832
- “épouses” frequency rank
- #3,914
- “excuses” frequency rank
- 18746
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | épouses | excuses |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Pluriel de épouse. | Pluriel de excuse. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set épouses and excuses apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
A purely visual mix-up. épouses (\e.puz\) and excuses (\ɛks.kyz\) 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 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 18746, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
épouses is recorded at frequency rank #14,832, classified as anoun, pronounced \e.puz\. excuses is at rank #3,914, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ɛks.kyz\.
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 18746, this pair ranks #376,780 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of épouses vs excuses
Shared letters: esu. Private to "épouses": opé. Private to "excuses": cx.
"épouses" · 7 letters · shape VCVVCVC · "excuses" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- excuses ← ecxuses · exccuses · excsues · excuess · excusess · excusses · exucses · exxcuses
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "épouses" and "excuses" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "épouses" or "excuses"?
Remembering épouses vs excuses
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 “épouses” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable