Which to use
“états” and “exams” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #563
- “états” frequency rank
- #33,252
- “exams” frequency rank
- 33815
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | états | exams |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Pluriel de état. | Pluriel de exam. |
Where the eye mixes états and exams
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. états and exams follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VCVCC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses états with exams
A purely visual mix-up. états (\e.ta\) and exams (\ɛɡ.zam\) 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 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33815, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
états is recorded at frequency rank #563, classified as anoun, pronounced \e.ta\. exams is at rank #33,252, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ɛɡ.zam\.
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 33815, this pair ranks #288,094 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of états vs exams
Shared letters: as. Private to "états": té. Private to "exams": emx.
"états" · 5 letters · shape VCVCC · "exams" · 5 letters · shape VCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- exams ← eaxms · examms · examss · exasm · exmas · exxams · xeams
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "états" and "exams" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "états" vs "exams" - 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 "états" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "exams" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #288,094 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "états" and "exams" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "épars vs exams". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #288,094 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.