Which to use
“forme” and “formule” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #371
- “forme” frequency rank
- #2,042
- “formule” frequency rank
- 2413
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | forme | formule |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Aspect extérieur, configuration caractéristique ou particulière d’une chose. | Expression rigoureuse et condensée en termes qui définissent une idée, une doctrine, une croyance, un sophisme, une opération, un ensemble d’opérations. |
Where the eye mixes forme and formule
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between forme and formule
A purely visual mix-up. forme (\fɔʁm\) and formule (\fɔʁ.myl\) 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 2413, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
forme is recorded at frequency rank #371, classified as anoun, pronounced \fɔʁm\. formule is at rank #2,042, tagged as anoun, pronounced \fɔʁ.myl\.
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 2413, this pair ranks #436,198 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of forme vs formule
Shared letters: efmor. Private to "forme": -. Private to "formule": lu.
"forme" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "formule" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "forme" for "formule" ever safe?
Which is more common, "forme" or "formule"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "forme" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "formule" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #436,198 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "forme" and "formule" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "formaté vs formule". 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 #436,198 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.