Which to use
“fétiches” is an adjective and “fiches” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #36,411
- “fétiches” frequency rank
- #7,320
- “fiches” frequency rank
- 43731
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fétiches | fiches |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Pluriel de fétiche. | Pluriel de fiche. |
Where the eye mixes fétiches and fiches
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. fétiches runs 8 letters (CVCVCCVC) against fiches's 6 (CVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses fétiches with fiches
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: fétiches is \fe.tiʃ\ while fiches is \fiʃ\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 43731, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fétiches is recorded at frequency rank #36,411, classified as anadj, pronounced \fe.tiʃ\. fiches is at rank #7,320, tagged as anoun, pronounced \fiʃ\.
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 43731, this pair ranks #215,851 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of fétiches vs fiches
Shared letters: cefhis. Private to "fétiches": té. Private to "fiches": -.
"fétiches" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC · "fiches" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- fiches ← fcihes · ffiches · ficches · ficehs · fichess · fichhes · fichse · fihces
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "fétiches" and "fiches" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "fétiches" or "fiches"?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "fétiches" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "fiches" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #215,851 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "fétiches" and "fiches" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "fétiches vs friches". 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 #215,851 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.