Which to use
“fêtes” and “fontes” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,929
- “fêtes” frequency rank
- #46,178
- “fontes” frequency rank
- 49107
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fêtes | fontes |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Pluriel de fête. | Fourreau de cuir pour les pistolets. |
Where the eye mixes fêtes and fontes
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. fêtes runs 5 letters (CVCVC) against fontes's 6 (CVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: fêtes vs fontes
A purely visual mix-up. fêtes (\fɛt\) and fontes (\fɔ̃t\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 49107, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fêtes is recorded at frequency rank #2,929, classified as anoun, pronounced \fɛt\. fontes is at rank #46,178, tagged as anoun, pronounced \fɔ̃t\.
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 49107, this pair ranks #173,438 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of fêtes vs fontes
Shared letters: efst. Private to "fêtes": ê. Private to "fontes": no.
"fêtes" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "fontes" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- fontes ← ffontes · fnotes · fonets · fonntes · fontess · fontse · fonttes · fotnes
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "fêtes" and "fontes" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "fêtes" or "fontes"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "fêtes" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "fontes" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #173,438 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "fêtes" and "fontes" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "foies vs fontes". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #173,438 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.