Which to use
“étouffe” is a verb and “étouffée” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #16,045
- “étouffe” frequency rank
- #26,237
- “étouffée” frequency rank
- 42282
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | étouffe | étouffée |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Première personne du singulier du présent de l’indicatif de étouffer. | Féminin singulier de étouffé. |
Where the eye mixes étouffe and étouffée
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. étouffe runs 7 letters (VCVVCCV) against étouffée's 8 (VCVVCCVV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: étouffe vs étouffée
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: étouffe is \e.tuf\ while étouffée is \e.tu.fe\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 42282, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
étouffe is recorded at frequency rank #16,045, classified as averb, pronounced \e.tuf\. étouffée is at rank #26,237, tagged as anadj, pronounced \e.tu.fe\.
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 42282, this pair ranks #226,798 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of étouffe vs étouffée
Shared letters: efotué. Private to "étouffe": -. Private to "étouffée": -.
"étouffe" · 7 letters · shape VCVVCCV · "étouffée" · 8 letters · shape VCVVCCVV
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "étouffe" and "étouffée" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "étouffe" vs "étouffée" - which ranks higher?
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 "étouffe" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "étouffée" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #226,798 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "étouffe" and "étouffée" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "étouffée vs étouffent". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #226,798 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.