Which to use
“étranger” is an adjective and “étrangle” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #1,174
- “étranger” frequency rank
- #36,677
- “étrangle” frequency rank
- 37851
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | étranger | étrangle |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Relatif à ce qui vient de l’extérieur. | Première personne du singulier du présent de l’indicatif de étrangler. |
Where the eye mixes étranger and étrangle
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses étranger with étrangle
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: étranger is \e.tʁɑ̃.ʒe\ while étrangle is \e.tʁɑ̃ɡl\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 37851, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
étranger is recorded at frequency rank #1,174, classified as anadj, pronounced \e.tʁɑ̃.ʒe\. étrangle is at rank #36,677, tagged as averb, pronounced \e.tʁɑ̃ɡl\.
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 37851, this pair ranks #259,520 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of étranger vs étrangle
Shared letters: aegnrté. Private to "étranger": -. Private to "étrangle": l.
"étranger" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC · "étrangle" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "étranger" for "étrangle" ever safe?
Frequency check: "étranger" vs "étrangle" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "étranger" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "étrangle" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #259,520 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "étranger" and "étrangle" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ébranle vs étrangle". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #259,520 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.