Which to use
“étages” and “étangs” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #5,416
- “étages” frequency rank
- #19,723
- “étangs” frequency rank
- 25139
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | étages | étangs |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Pluriel de étage. | Pluriel de étang. |
Where the eye mixes étages and étangs
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. étages (VCVCVC) and étangs (VCVCCC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between étages and étangs
A purely visual mix-up. étages (\e.taʒ\) and étangs (\e.tɑ̃\) 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 25139, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
étages is recorded at frequency rank #5,416, classified as anoun, pronounced \e.taʒ\. étangs is at rank #19,723, tagged as anoun, pronounced \e.tɑ̃\.
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 25139, this pair ranks #342,584 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of étages vs étangs
Shared letters: agsté. Private to "étages": e. Private to "étangs": n.
"étages" · 6 letters · shape VCVCVC · "étangs" · 6 letters · shape VCVCCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "étages" for "étangs" ever safe?
Which is more common, "étages" or "étangs"?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "étages" and "étangs" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "étages" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "étangs" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #342,584 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "étages" and "étangs" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "étals vs étangs". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #342,584 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.