Which to use
“épuisent” and “équipent” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #35,346
- “épuisent” frequency rank
- #45,969
- “équipent” frequency rank
- 81315
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | épuisent | équipent |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Troisième personne du pluriel du présent de l’indicatif de épuiser. | Troisième personne du pluriel du présent de l’indicatif de équiper. |
Where the eye mixes épuisent and équipent
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. épuisent and équipent follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VCVVCVCC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses épuisent with équipent
A purely visual mix-up. épuisent (\e.pɥiz\) and équipent (\e.kip\) 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 81315, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
épuisent is recorded at frequency rank #35,346, classified as averb, pronounced \e.pɥiz\. équipent is at rank #45,969, tagged as averb, pronounced \e.kip\.
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 81315, this pair ranks #19,010 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of épuisent vs équipent
Shared letters: einptué. Private to "épuisent": s. Private to "équipent": q.
"épuisent" · 8 letters · shape VCVVCVCC · "équipent" · 8 letters · shape VCVVCVCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "épuisent" for "équipent" ever safe?
Frequency check: "épuisent" vs "équipent" - which ranks higher?
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 "épuisent" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "équipent" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #19,010 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "épuisent" and "équipent" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "équipent vs equipment". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #19,010 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.