Which to use
“filer” and “filtrer” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #7,321
- “filer” frequency rank
- #18,751
- “filtrer” frequency rank
- 26072
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | filer | filtrer |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tordre ensemble plusieurs brins de chanvre, de lin, de soie, de laine, etc., pour qu’ils forment un fil. | Passer par un filtre pour séparer un ou des éléments constituants. |
Where the eye mixes filer and filtrer
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. filer runs 5 letters (CVCVC) against filtrer's 7 (CVCCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: filer vs filtrer
A purely visual mix-up. filer (\fi.le\) and filtrer (\fil.tʁe\) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 26072, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
filer is recorded at frequency rank #7,321, classified as averb, pronounced \fi.le\. filtrer is at rank #18,751, tagged as averb, pronounced \fil.tʁe\.
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 26072, this pair ranks #337,276 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of filer vs filtrer
Shared letters: efilr. Private to "filer": -. Private to "filtrer": t.
"filer" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "filtrer" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "filer" for "filtrer" ever safe?
Frequency check: "filer" vs "filtrer" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "filer" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "filtrer" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #337,276 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "filer" and "filtrer" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "filtrée vs filtrer". 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 #337,276 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.