fréquentevsfréquentsWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#6,831
“fréquente” frequency rank
#10,709
“fréquents” frequency rank
17540
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature fréquente fréquents
Definition Féminin singulier de fréquent. Masculin pluriel de fréquent.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set fréquente and fréquents apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch
fréquente
9 ch
fréquents

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. fréquente (\fʁe.kɑ̃t\) and fréquents (\fʁe.kɑ̃\) 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 - e in “fréquente” becomes s in “fréquents”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 17540, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

fréquente is recorded at frequency rank #6,831, classified as anadj, pronounced \fʁe.kɑ̃t\. fréquents is at rank #10,709, tagged as anadj, pronounced \fʁe.kɑ̃\.

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 17540, this pair ranks #382,649 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of fréquente vs fréquents

Shared letters: efnqrtué. Private to "fréquente": -. Private to "fréquents": s.

"fréquente" · 9 letters · shape CCVCVVCCV  ·  "fréquents" · 9 letters · shape CCVCVVCCC

Frequency comparison

fréquente#6,831
fréquents#10,709

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "fréquente" and "fréquents" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\fʁe.kɑ̃t\ versus \fʁe.kɑ̃\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "fréquente" or "fréquents"?
"fréquente" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,831 in our French list, against #10,709 for "fréquents". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering fréquente vs fréquents

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 “fréquente” 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