Which to use
“instances” is a noun and “instants” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #7,196
- “instances” frequency rank
- #6,401
- “instants” frequency rank
- 13597
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | instances | instants |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Pluriel de instance. | Masculin pluriel de instant. |
Where the eye mixes instances and instants
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. instances runs 9 letters (VCCCVCCVC) against instants's 8 (VCCCVCCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses instances with instants
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: instances is \ɛ̃s.tɑ̃s\ while instants is \ɛ̃s.tɑ̃\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 13597, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
instances is recorded at frequency rank #7,196, classified as anoun, pronounced \ɛ̃s.tɑ̃s\. instants is at rank #6,401, tagged as anadj, pronounced \ɛ̃s.tɑ̃\.
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 13597, this pair ranks #400,349 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of instances vs instants
Shared letters: ainst. Private to "instances": ce. Private to "instants": -.
"instances" · 9 letters · shape VCCCVCCVC · "instants" · 8 letters · shape VCCCVCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "instances" and "instants" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "instances" vs "instants" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "instances" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "instants" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #400,349 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "instances" and "instants" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "installes vs instances". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #400,349 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.