Which to use
“épuisée” is an adjective and “expulsée” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #15,070
- “épuisée” frequency rank
- #30,599
- “expulsée” frequency rank
- 45669
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | épuisée | expulsée |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Féminin singulier de épuisé. | Personne qui est ou fut victime d'une expulsion. |
Where the eye mixes épuisée and expulsée
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. épuisée runs 7 letters (VCVVCVV) against expulsée's 8 (VCCVCCVV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between épuisée and expulsée
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: épuisée is \e.pɥi.ze\ while expulsée is \ɛk.spyl.se\. 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 noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 45669, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
épuisée is recorded at frequency rank #15,070, classified as anadj, pronounced \e.pɥi.ze\. expulsée is at rank #30,599, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ɛk.spyl.se\.
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 45669, this pair ranks #200,968 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of épuisée vs expulsée
Shared letters: epsué. Private to "épuisée": i. Private to "expulsée": lx.
"épuisée" · 7 letters · shape VCVVCVV · "expulsée" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "épuisée" for "expulsée" ever safe?
Which is more common, "épuisée" or "expulsée"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "épuisée" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "expulsée" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #200,968 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "épuisée" and "expulsée" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "excusée vs expulsée". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #200,968 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.