Which to use
“figues” and “files” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #28,559
- “figues” frequency rank
- #11,220
- “files” frequency rank
- 39779
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | figues | files |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Pluriel de figue. | Pluriel de file. |
Where the eye mixes figues and files
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between figues and files
A purely visual mix-up. figues (\fiɡ\) and files (\fil\) 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 39779, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
figues is recorded at frequency rank #28,559, classified as anoun, pronounced \fiɡ\. files is at rank #11,220, tagged as anoun, pronounced \fil\.
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 39779, this pair ranks #245,459 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of figues vs files
Shared letters: efis. Private to "figues": gu. Private to "files": l.
"figues" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC · "files" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "figues" and "files" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "figues" vs "files" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "figues" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "files" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #245,459 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "figues" and "files" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "figées vs figues". 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 #245,459 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.