Which to use
“harpe” and “herpès” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #19,555
- “harpe” frequency rank
- #32,433
- “herpès” frequency rank
- 51988
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | harpe | herpès |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Cordophone à cordes pincées, que l'on tient debout, reposant par terre, garni de cordes verticales de longueur décroissante, que l’on pince avec les doigts. | Maladie virale très contagieuse, sexuellement transmissible. Elle est caractérisée, pendant les périodes de crise, par une éruption vésiculeuse caractérisée par de légères élevures transparentes rassemblées en groupes sur une base enflammée. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set harpe and herpès apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
A purely visual mix-up. harpe (^((h aspiré))\aʁp\) and herpès (\ɛʁ.pɛs\) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 51988, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
harpe is recorded at frequency rank #19,555, classified as anoun, pronounced ^((h aspiré))\aʁp\. herpès is at rank #32,433, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ɛʁ.pɛs\.
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 51988, this pair ranks #150,983 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of harpe vs herpès
Shared letters: ehpr. Private to "harpe": a. Private to "herpès": sè.
"harpe" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "herpès" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- harpe ← ahrpe · hapre · harep · harppe · harrpe · hharpe · hrape
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "harpe" and "herpès" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "harpe" or "herpès"?
Remembering harpe vs herpès
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 “harpe” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable