Which to use
“fil” and “fin” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,263
- “fil” frequency rank
- #168
- “fin” frequency rank
- 1431
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fil | fin |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Petite partie longue et déliée qu’on détache de l’écorce du chanvre, du lin, etc. | Ce qui termine une chose, en marque la limite, en est l'extrémité. |
Where the eye mixes fil and fin
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses fil with fin
A purely visual mix-up. fil (\fil\) and fin (\fɛ̃\) 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 a single letter - l in “fil” becomes n in “fin”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 1431, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fil is recorded at frequency rank #1,263, classified as anoun, pronounced \fil\. fin is at rank #168, tagged as anoun, pronounced \fɛ̃\.
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 1431, this pair ranks #438,074 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of fil vs fin
Shared letters: fi. Private to "fil": l. Private to "fin": n.
"fil" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "fin" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "fil" and "fin" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "fil" or "fin"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "fil" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "fin" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #438,074 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "fil" and "fin" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "fil vs filez". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #438,074 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.