Which to use
“final” is an adjective and “finale” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #1,139
- “final” frequency rank
- #876
- “finale” frequency rank
- 2015
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | final | finale |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Qui finit, qui termine. | Partie opposant les deux derniers concurrents restant en lice, dans les tournois par élimination. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set final and finale apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
final and finale form a confusable pair in the French index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “final” sits inside “finale” - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 2015, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
final is recorded at frequency rank #1,139, classified as anadj, pronounced \fi.nal\. finale is at rank #876, tagged as anoun, pronounced \fi.nal\.
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 2015, this pair ranks #436,934 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "final" and "finale" be used interchangeably?
Remembering final vs finale
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “final”; for a noun, it's “finale”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “final” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable