larmevslemmeWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#13,628
“larme” frequency rank
#48,640
“lemme” frequency rank
62268
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature larme lemme
Definition Goutte du liquide sécrété par les glandes lacrymales situées à côté de chaque œil. Proposition dont la démonstration est nécessaire pour une autre proposition qui doit la suivre.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set larme and lemme apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
larme
5 ch
lemme

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. larme (\laʁm\) and lemme (\lɛm\) 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 62268, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

larme is recorded at frequency rank #13,628, classified as anoun, pronounced \laʁm\. lemme is at rank #48,640, tagged as anoun, pronounced \lɛm\.

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 62268, this pair ranks #87,978 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of larme vs lemme

Shared letters: elm. Private to "larme": ar. Private to "lemme": -.

"larme" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV  ·  "lemme" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • larmealrme · lamre · larem · larmme · larrme · llarme · lrame
  • lemmeelmme · leme · lemem · llemme · lmeme

Frequency comparison

larme#13,628
lemme#48,640

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "larme" and "lemme" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\laʁm\ versus \lɛm\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "larme" or "lemme"?
"larme" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #13,628 in our French list, against #48,640 for "lemme". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering larme vs lemme

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 “larme” 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