Which to use
“lai” and “lep” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #19,335
- “lai” frequency rank
- #49,766
- “lep” frequency rank
- 69101
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lai | lep |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Laïc, convers. | Beau, agréable. |
Where the eye mixes lai and lep
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Visual trap between lai and lep
A purely visual mix-up. lai (\lɛ\) and lep (\lɛːp\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 69101, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
lai is recorded at frequency rank #19,335, classified as anadj, pronounced \lɛ\. lep is at rank #49,766, tagged as anadj, pronounced \lɛːp\.
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 69101, this pair ranks #56,469 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of lai vs lep
Shared letters: l. Private to "lai": ai. Private to "lep": ep.
"lai" · 3 letters · shape CVV · "lep" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "lai" and "lep" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "lai" or "lep"?
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 "lai" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "lep" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #56,469 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "lai" and "lep" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "lar vs lep". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #56,469 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.