Which to use
“hypothèque” and “hypothèse” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #17,154
- “hypothèque” frequency rank
- #3,202
- “hypothèse” frequency rank
- 20356
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | hypothèque | hypothèse |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Accord entre celui qui emprunte de l’argent (le propriétaire) et celui qui fournit l’argent (le créancier). Si le montant d’argent (qui est égal à la valeur de la propriété) n’est pas remboursé, le créancier peut faire réaliser le bien, généralement par vente aux enchères, afin d'obtenir la somme qui lui est due. (En jargon juridique : droit réel qui grève les immeubles affectés à la sûreté, à l’acquittement d’une obligation, d’une dette, et qui les suit en quelques mains qu’ils passent.) | Supposition que l’on fait sans se demander si elle est vraie ou fausse, mais seulement pour en tirer des conséquences à vérifier. |
Where the eye mixes hypothèque and hypothèse
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses hypothèque with hypothèse
A purely visual mix-up. hypothèque (\i.pɔ.tɛk\) and hypothèse (\i.pɔ.tɛz\) 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 20356, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
hypothèque is recorded at frequency rank #17,154, classified as anoun, pronounced \i.pɔ.tɛk\. hypothèse is at rank #3,202, tagged as anoun, pronounced \i.pɔ.tɛz\.
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 20356, this pair ranks #368,690 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of hypothèque vs hypothèse
Shared letters: ehoptyè. Private to "hypothèque": qu. Private to "hypothèse": s.
"hypothèque" · 10 letters · shape CVCVCCVCVV · "hypothèse" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "hypothèque" and "hypothèse" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "hypothèque" or "hypothèse"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "hypothèque" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "hypothèse" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #368,690 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "hypothèque" and "hypothèse" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "hypothèque vs hypothéquer". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #368,690 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.