équilibrevséquilibrésWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: équilibre is a noun, équilibrés is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“équilibre” is a noun and “équilibrés” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#2,458
“équilibre” frequency rank
#31,311
“équilibrés” frequency rank
33769
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature équilibre équilibrés
Definition État des corps maintenus en repos sous l’influence de plusieurs forces qui se contrebalancent exactement. Masculin pluriel de équilibré.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set équilibre and équilibrés apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch
équilibre
10 ch
équilibrés

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: équilibre is \e.ki.libʁ\ while équilibrés is \e.ki.li.bʁe\. 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 (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33769, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

équilibre is recorded at frequency rank #2,458, classified as anoun, pronounced \e.ki.libʁ\. équilibrés is at rank #31,311, tagged as anadj, pronounced \e.ki.li.bʁe\.

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 33769, this pair ranks #288,389 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of équilibre vs équilibrés

Shared letters: bilqrué. Private to "équilibre": e. Private to "équilibrés": s.

"équilibre" · 9 letters · shape VCVVCVCCV  ·  "équilibrés" · 10 letters · shape VCVVCVCCVC

Frequency comparison

équilibre#2,458
équilibrés#31,311

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "équilibre" and "équilibrés" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "équilibre" is a noun and "équilibrés" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "équilibre" or "équilibrés"?
"équilibre" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,458 in our French list, against #31,311 for "équilibrés". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering équilibre vs équilibrés

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “équilibre”; for an adjective, it's “équilibrés”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “équilibre” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list