Which to use
“éteins” is a verb and “éteints” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #29,615
- “éteins” frequency rank
- #27,670
- “éteints” frequency rank
- 57285
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | éteins | éteints |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Première personne du singulier de l’indicatif présent de éteindre. | Masculin pluriel de éteint. |
Same sound, different letters: éteins vs éteints
Muted letters are shared; highlighted letters are the only spelling cue when pronunciation matches. Shared run: 6 letters. éteins runs 6 letters (VCVVCC) against éteints's 7 (VCVVCCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Ear matches; page differs - éteins and éteints
Say them out loud and nothing separates them: éteins and éteints carry the same recorded pronunciation, \e.tɛ̃\. Grammar is what tells them apart: one is averb, the other anadjective, so most sentences will only accept one of them. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 57285, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
éteins is recorded at frequency rank #29,615, classified as averb, pronounced \e.tɛ̃\. éteints is at rank #27,670, tagged as anadj, pronounced \e.tɛ̃\.
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 57285, this pair ranks #115,982 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of éteins vs éteints
Shared letters: einsté. Private to "éteins": -. Private to "éteints": -.
"éteins" · 6 letters · shape VCVVCC · "éteints" · 7 letters · shape VCVVCCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "éteins" for "éteints" ever safe?
Which is more common, "éteins" or "éteints"?
What to do next
You've separated the homophone pair "éteins" / "éteints". Follow the links when you need the full entry or a neighbour that trips the same ear.
- Full dictionary entry for "éteins" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "éteints" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #115,982 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "éteins" and "éteints" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "éteins vs étuis". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #115,982 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.