laidesvslaïquesWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#42,427
“laides” frequency rank
#21,989
“laïques” frequency rank
64416
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature laides laïques
Definition Féminin pluriel de laid. Féminin pluriel de laïc.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set laides and laïques apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
laides
7 ch
laïques

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. laides (\lɛd\) and laïques (\la.ik\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 64416, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

laides is recorded at frequency rank #42,427, classified as anadj, pronounced \lɛd\. laïques is at rank #21,989, tagged as anadj, pronounced \la.ik\.

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 64416, this pair ranks #77,195 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of laides vs laïques

Shared letters: aels. Private to "laides": di. Private to "laïques": quï.

"laides" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC  ·  "laïques" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • laidesalides · laiddes · laidess · laidse · laieds · liades · llaides

Frequency comparison

laides#42,427
laïques#21,989

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "laides" and "laïques" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\lɛd\ versus \la.ik\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "laides" or "laïques"?
"laïques" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #21,989 in our French list, against #42,427 for "laides". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering laides vs laïques

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 “laides” 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