fondationvsfondationsWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“fondation” and “fondations” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#2,576
“fondation” frequency rank
#9,317
“fondations” frequency rank
11893
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature fondation fondations
Definition Action de fonder, de bâtir la base de quelque chose ; commencement de quelque chose de durable. Pluriel de fondation.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set fondation and fondations apart are highlighted. They share 9 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch
fondation
10 ch
fondations

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

This is the hard kind. fondation and fondations are pronounced identically (\fɔ̃.da.sjɔ̃\) and both work as anoun. Neither the ear nor the grammar will rescue you; only the meaning does, so the glosses below are the whole decision. They differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “fondation” sits inside “fondations”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 11893, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

fondation is recorded at frequency rank #2,576, classified as anoun, pronounced \fɔ̃.da.sjɔ̃\. fondations is at rank #9,317, tagged as anoun, pronounced \fɔ̃.da.sjɔ̃\.

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 11893, this pair ranks #407,396 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of fondation vs fondations

Shared letters: adfinot. Private to "fondation": -. Private to "fondations": s.

"fondation" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCVVC  ·  "fondations" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVCVVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • fondationffondation · fnodation · fodnation · fonadtion · fondaiton · fondatino · fondationn · fondatoin
  • fondationsffondations · fnodations · fodnations · fonadtions · fondaitons · fondatinos · fondationns · fondationss

Frequency comparison

fondation#2,576
fondations#9,317

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "fondation" and "fondations" be used interchangeably?
No. They are pronounced the same (\fɔ̃.da.sjɔ̃\), which is exactly why they get swapped in writing, but the dictionary meanings above are different, and pronunciation is no guide here.
Which is more common, "fondation" or "fondations"?
"fondation" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,576 in our French list, against #9,317 for "fondations". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering fondation vs fondations

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “fondation” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list