iecvsitsWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: iec is a verb, its is a determiner, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“iec” is a verb and “its” is a determiner - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#48,589
“iec” frequency rank
#15,916
“its” frequency rank
64505
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature iec its
Definition Deuxième personne du pluriel du présent du verbe ié. Son, sa (lorsque c’est une chose qui possède).

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set iec and its apart are highlighted. They share 1 letter in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

3 ch
iec
3 ch
its

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: iec is \iˈɛʃ\ while its is \ɪts\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs determiner), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 64505, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

iec is recorded at frequency rank #48,589, classified as averb, pronounced \iˈɛʃ\. its is at rank #15,916, tagged as adet, pronounced \ɪts\.

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 64505, this pair ranks #76,717 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of iec vs its

Shared letters: i. Private to "iec": ce. Private to "its": st.

"iec" · 3 letters · shape VVC  ·  "its" · 3 letters · shape VCC

Frequency comparison

iec#48,589
its#15,916

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "iec" and "its" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "iec" is a verb and "its" a determiner, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "iec" or "its"?
"its" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #15,916 in our French list, against #48,589 for "iec". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering iec vs its

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “iec”; for a determiner, it's “its”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “iec” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list