étrangesvsétrangleWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: étranges is a adjective, étrangle is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“étranges” is an adjective and “étrangle” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#8,183
“étranges” frequency rank
#36,677
“étrangle” frequency rank
44860
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature étranges étrangle
Definition Pluriel de étrange. Première personne du singulier du présent de l’indicatif de étrangler.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set étranges and étrangle apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
étranges
8 ch
étrangle

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: étranges is \e.tʁɑ̃ʒ\ 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 44860, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

étranges is recorded at frequency rank #8,183, classified as anadj, pronounced \e.tʁɑ̃ʒ\. 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 44860, this pair ranks #207,242 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of étranges vs étrangle

Shared letters: aegnrté. Private to "étranges": s. Private to "étrangle": l.

"étranges" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC  ·  "étrangle" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCCV

Frequency comparison

étranges#8,183
étrangle#36,677

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "étranges" and "étrangle" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "étranges" is an adjective and "étrangle" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "étranges" or "étrangle"?
"étranges" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #8,183 in our French list, against #36,677 for "étrangle". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering étranges vs étrangle

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “étranges”; for a verb, it's “étrangle”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “étranges” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list