inefficacevsinefficacesWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#18,226
“inefficace” frequency rank
#27,102
“inefficaces” frequency rank
45328
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature inefficace inefficaces
Definition Qui n’a pas d’efficacité, qui ne produit pas son effet. Pluriel de inefficace.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set inefficace and inefficaces apart are highlighted. They share 10 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

10 ch
inefficace
11 ch
inefficaces

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

This is the hard kind. inefficace and inefficaces are pronounced identically (\i.ne.fi.kas\) and both work as anadjective. Neither the ear nor the grammar will rescue you; only the meaning does, so the glosses below are the whole decision. They differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “inefficace” sits inside “inefficaces”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 45328, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

inefficace is recorded at frequency rank #18,226, classified as anadj, pronounced \i.ne.fi.kas\. inefficaces is at rank #27,102, tagged as anadj, pronounced \i.ne.fi.kas\.

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 45328, this pair ranks #203,558 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of inefficace vs inefficaces

Shared letters: acefin. Private to "inefficace": -. Private to "inefficaces": s.

"inefficace" · 10 letters · shape VCVCCVCVCV  ·  "inefficaces" · 11 letters · shape VCVCCVCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • inefficaceienfficace · ineffciace · ineffiacce · inefficacce · inefficaec · inefficcace · inefficcae · ineficace
  • inefficacesienfficaces · ineffciaces · ineffiacces · inefficacces · inefficacess · inefficacse · inefficaecs · inefficcaces

Frequency comparison

inefficace#18,226
inefficaces#27,102

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "inefficace" and "inefficaces" be used interchangeably?
No. They are pronounced the same (\i.ne.fi.kas\), which is exactly why they get swapped in writing, but the dictionary meanings above are different, and pronunciation is no guide here.
Which is more common, "inefficace" or "inefficaces"?
"inefficace" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #18,226 in our French list, against #27,102 for "inefficaces". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering inefficace vs inefficaces

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 “inefficace” 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