Which to use
“épris” is an adjective and “étuis” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #24,088
- “épris” frequency rank
- #47,703
- “étuis” frequency rank
- 71791
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | épris | étuis |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Qui est saisi par un vif sentiment de relation affective, une passion pour quelqu'un ou quelque chose. | Pluriel de étui. |
Where the eye mixes épris and étuis
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. épris (VCCVC) and étuis (VCVVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Look-alike desk: épris vs étuis
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: épris is \e.pʁi\ while étuis is \e.tɥi\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 71791, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
épris is recorded at frequency rank #24,088, classified as anadj, pronounced \e.pʁi\. étuis is at rank #47,703, tagged as anoun, pronounced \e.tɥi\.
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 71791, this pair ranks #46,287 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of épris vs étuis
Shared letters: isé. Private to "épris": pr. Private to "étuis": tu.
"épris" · 5 letters · shape VCCVC · "étuis" · 5 letters · shape VCVVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "épris" for "étuis" ever safe?
Which is more common, "épris" or "étuis"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "épris" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "étuis" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #46,287 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "épris" and "étuis" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "étai vs étuis". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #46,287 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.