Which to use
“inquiéter” is a verb and “inquiètes” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #6,516
- “inquiéter” frequency rank
- #10,724
- “inquiètes” frequency rank
- 17240
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | inquiéter | inquiètes |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Rendre inquiet. | Féminin pluriel de inquiet. |
Where the eye mixes inquiéter and inquiètes
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. inquiéter and inquiètes follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (VCCVVVCVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses inquiéter with inquiètes
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: inquiéter is \ɛ̃.kje.te\ while inquiètes is \ɛ̃.kjɛt\. 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 adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 17240, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
inquiéter is recorded at frequency rank #6,516, classified as averb, pronounced \ɛ̃.kje.te\. inquiètes is at rank #10,724, tagged as anadj, pronounced \ɛ̃.kjɛt\.
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 17240, this pair ranks #384,137 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of inquiéter vs inquiètes
Shared letters: einqtu. Private to "inquiéter": ré. Private to "inquiètes": sè.
"inquiéter" · 9 letters · shape VCCVVVCVC · "inquiètes" · 9 letters · shape VCCVVVCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "inquiéter" for "inquiètes" ever safe?
Which is more common, "inquiéter" or "inquiètes"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "inquiéter" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "inquiètes" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #384,137 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "inquiéter" and "inquiètes" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "inquiétée vs inquiètes". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #384,137 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.