Which to use
“établir” and “étaler” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,498
- “établir” frequency rank
- #14,584
- “étaler” frequency rank
- 17082
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | établir | étaler |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Asseoir et fixer une chose en un endroit, l’y rendre stable. | Exposer en vente, dans une boutique ou dans quelque autre lieu, des marchandises, des denrées, etc. |
Where the eye mixes établir and étaler
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. établir runs 7 letters (VCVCCVC) against étaler's 6 (VCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses établir with étaler
A purely visual mix-up. établir (\e.ta.bliʁ\) and étaler (\e.ta.le\) 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 17082, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
établir is recorded at frequency rank #2,498, classified as averb, pronounced \e.ta.bliʁ\. étaler is at rank #14,584, tagged as averb, pronounced \e.ta.le\.
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 17082, this pair ranks #384,896 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of établir vs étaler
Shared letters: alrté. Private to "établir": bi. Private to "étaler": e.
"établir" · 7 letters · shape VCVCCVC · "étaler" · 6 letters · shape VCVCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "établir" and "étaler" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "établir" vs "étaler" - 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 "établir" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "étaler" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #384,896 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "établir" and "étaler" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "étaler vs étayée". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #384,896 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.