espacesvsespèceWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“espaces” and “espèce” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#3,253
“espaces” frequency rank
#1,027
“espèce” frequency rank
4280
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature espaces espèce
Definition Pluriel de espace. Image ; aspect ; apparence.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set espaces and espèce apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
espaces
6 ch
espèce

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. espaces (\ɛs.pas\) and espèce (\ɛs.pɛs\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 4280, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

espaces is recorded at frequency rank #3,253, classified as anoun, pronounced \ɛs.pas\. espèce is at rank #1,027, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ɛs.pɛs\.

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 4280, this pair ranks #432,005 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of espaces vs espèce

Shared letters: ceps. Private to "espaces": a. Private to "espèce": è.

"espaces" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC  ·  "espèce" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • espacesepsaces · esapces · espacces · espacess · espacse · espaecs · espcaes · esppaces

Frequency comparison

espaces#3,253
espèce#1,027

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "espaces" and "espèce" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\ɛs.pas\ versus \ɛs.pɛs\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "espaces" or "espèce"?
"espèce" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,027 in our French list, against #3,253 for "espaces". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering espaces vs espèce

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “espaces” 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