Which to use
“étendait” and “étendent” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #22,143
- “étendait” frequency rank
- #17,601
- “étendent” frequency rank
- 39744
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | étendait | étendent |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Troisième personne du singulier de l’imparfait de étendre. | Troisième personne du pluriel du présent de l’indicatif de étendre. |
Where the eye mixes étendait and étendent
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. étendait (VCVCCVVC) and étendent (VCVCCVCC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Look-alike desk: étendait vs étendent
A purely visual mix-up. étendait (\e.tɑ̃.dɛ\) and étendent (\e.tɑ̃d\) 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 39744, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
étendait is recorded at frequency rank #22,143, classified as averb, pronounced \e.tɑ̃.dɛ\. étendent is at rank #17,601, tagged as averb, pronounced \e.tɑ̃d\.
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 39744, this pair ranks #245,710 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of étendait vs étendent
Shared letters: denté. Private to "étendait": ai. Private to "étendent": -.
"étendait" · 8 letters · shape VCVCCVVC · "étendent" · 8 letters · shape VCVCCVCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "étendait" for "étendent" ever safe?
In ordinary French text, does "étendait" or "étendent" show up more?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "étendait" and "étendent" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "étendait" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "étendent" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #245,710 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "étendait" and "étendent" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "étendait vs étendit". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #245,710 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.