Which to use
“épuisante” is an adjective and “épuisent” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #49,448
- “épuisante” frequency rank
- #35,346
- “épuisent” frequency rank
- 84794
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | épuisante | épuisent |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Féminin singulier de épuisant. | Troisième personne du pluriel du présent de l’indicatif de épuiser. |
Where the eye mixes épuisante and épuisent
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. épuisante runs 9 letters (VCVVCVCCV) against épuisent's 8 (VCVVCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses épuisante with épuisent
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: épuisante is \e.pɥi.zɑ̃t\ while épuisent is \e.pɥiz\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 84794, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
épuisante is recorded at frequency rank #49,448, classified as anadj, pronounced \e.pɥi.zɑ̃t\. épuisent is at rank #35,346, tagged as averb, pronounced \e.pɥiz\.
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 84794, this pair ranks #12,356 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of épuisante vs épuisent
Shared letters: einpstué. Private to "épuisante": a. Private to "épuisent": -.
"épuisante" · 9 letters · shape VCVVCVCCV · "épuisent" · 8 letters · shape VCVVCVCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "épuisante" and "épuisent" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "épuisante" vs "épuisent" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "épuisante" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "épuisent" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #12,356 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "épuisante" and "épuisent" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "épuisent vs équipent". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #12,356 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.