Which to use
“étonnent” and “étonnes” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #26,590
- “étonnent” frequency rank
- #17,051
- “étonnes” frequency rank
- 43641
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | étonnent | étonnes |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Troisième personne du pluriel du présent de l’indicatif de étonner. | Deuxième personne du singulier du présent de l’indicatif de étonner. |
Same sound, different letters: étonnent vs étonnes
Muted letters are shared; highlighted letters are the only spelling cue when pronunciation matches. Shared run: 6 letters. étonnent runs 8 letters (VCVCCVCC) against étonnes's 7 (VCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Homophone desk: étonnent vs étonnes
This is the hard kind. étonnent and étonnes are pronounced identically (\e.tɔn\) and both work as averb. Neither the ear nor the grammar will rescue you; only the meaning does, so the glosses below are the whole decision. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 43641, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
étonnent is recorded at frequency rank #26,590, classified as averb, pronounced \e.tɔn\. étonnes is at rank #17,051, tagged as averb, pronounced \e.tɔn\.
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 43641, this pair ranks #216,495 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of étonnent vs étonnes
Shared letters: enoté. Private to "étonnent": -. Private to "étonnes": s.
"étonnent" · 8 letters · shape VCVCCVCC · "étonnes" · 7 letters · shape VCVCCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "étonnent" and "étonnes" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "étonnent" or "étonnes"?
Useful next steps
You've separated the homophone pair "étonnent" / "étonnes". Follow the links when you need the full entry or a neighbour that trips the same ear.
- Full dictionary entry for "étonnent" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "étonnes" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #216,495 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "étonnent" and "étonnes" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "étonnent vs étonnez". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #216,495 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.