Which to use
“féminine” is a noun and “féminines” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #4,674
- “féminine” frequency rank
- #10,331
- “féminines” frequency rank
- 15005
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | féminine | féminines |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Sportive (par opposition aux hommes). | Féminin pluriel de féminin. |
Same sound, different letters: féminine vs féminines
Muted letters are shared; highlighted letters are the only spelling cue when pronunciation matches. Shared run: 8 letters. féminine runs 8 letters (CVCVCVCV) against féminines's 9 (CVCVCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Same sound, different spelling - féminine / féminines
Say them out loud and nothing separates them: féminine and féminines carry the same recorded pronunciation, \fe.mi.nin\. Grammar is what tells them apart: one is anoun, the other anadjective, so most sentences will only accept one of them. They differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “féminine” sits inside “féminines”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 15005, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
féminine is recorded at frequency rank #4,674, classified as anoun, pronounced \fe.mi.nin\. féminines is at rank #10,331, tagged as anadj, pronounced \fe.mi.nin\.
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 15005, this pair ranks #394,277 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of féminine vs féminines
Shared letters: efimné. Private to "féminine": -. Private to "féminines": s.
"féminine" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCVCV · "féminines" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCVCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "féminine" for "féminines" ever safe?
Which is more common, "féminine" or "féminines"?
Useful next steps
You've separated the homophone pair "féminine" / "féminines". Follow the links when you need the full entry or a neighbour that trips the same ear.
- Full dictionary entry for "féminine" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "féminines" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #394,277 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "féminine" and "féminines" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "féminines vs féminité". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #394,277 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.