Which to use
“étendait” and “étendit” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #22,143
- “étendait” frequency rank
- #42,703
- “étendit” frequency rank
- 64846
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | étendait | étendit |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Troisième personne du singulier de l’imparfait de étendre. | Troisième personne du singulier du passé simple de étendre. |
Where the eye mixes étendait and étendit
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. étendait runs 8 letters (VCVCCVVC) against étendit's 7 (VCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: étendait vs étendit
A purely visual mix-up. étendait (\e.tɑ̃.dɛ\) and étendit (\e.tɑ̃.di\) 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 64846, 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\. étendit is at rank #42,703, tagged as averb, pronounced \e.tɑ̃.di\.
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 64846, this pair ranks #75,085 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of étendait vs étendit
Shared letters: deinté. Private to "étendait": a. Private to "étendit": -.
"étendait" · 8 letters · shape VCVCCVVC · "étendit" · 7 letters · shape VCVCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "étendait" and "étendit" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "étendait" or "étendit"?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "étendait" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "étendit" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #75,085 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "étendait" and "étendit" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "entendis vs étendit". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #75,085 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.