faisceauvsfaisceauxWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“faisceau” and “faisceaux” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#13,596
“faisceau” frequency rank
#22,263
“faisceaux” frequency rank
35859
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature faisceau faisceaux
Definition Assemblage de certaines choses de même nature et de forme allongée liées ensemble. Pluriel de faisceau.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set faisceau and faisceaux apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
faisceau
9 ch
faisceaux

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

This is the hard kind. faisceau and faisceaux are pronounced identically (\fɛ.so\) and both work as anoun. 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 extra letter(s) - “faisceau” sits inside “faisceaux”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 35859, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

faisceau is recorded at frequency rank #13,596, classified as anoun, pronounced \fɛ.so\. faisceaux is at rank #22,263, tagged as anoun, pronounced \fɛ.so\.

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 35859, this pair ranks #273,726 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of faisceau vs faisceaux

Shared letters: acefisu. Private to "faisceau": -. Private to "faisceaux": x.

"faisceau" · 8 letters · shape CVVCCVVV  ·  "faisceaux" · 9 letters · shape CVVCCVVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • faisceauafisceau · faicseau · faiscaeu · faiscceau · faisceua · faisecau · faissceau · fasiceau
  • faisceauxafisceaux · faicseaux · faiscaeux · faiscceaux · faisceauxx · faisceaxu · faisceuax · faisecaux

Frequency comparison

faisceau#13,596
faisceaux#22,263

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "faisceau" and "faisceaux" be used interchangeably?
No. They are pronounced the same (\fɛ.so\), which is exactly why they get swapped in writing, but the dictionary meanings above are different, and pronunciation is no guide here.
Which is more common, "faisceau" or "faisceaux"?
"faisceau" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #13,596 in our French list, against #22,263 for "faisceaux". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering faisceau vs faisceaux

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “faisceau” 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