Which to use
“least” is a verb and “liste” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #42,429
- “least” frequency rank
- #604
- “liste” frequency rank
- 43033
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | least | liste |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Deuxième personne du pluriel de l’impératif présent de leasen. | Bande, bordure. |
Same sound, different letters: least vs liste
Muted letters are shared; highlighted letters are the only spelling cue when pronunciation matches. Shared run: 3 letters.
Ear matches; page differs - least and liste
Say them out loud and nothing separates them: least and liste carry the same recorded pronunciation, \liːst\. Grammar is what tells them apart: one is averb, the other anoun, so most sentences will only accept one of them. They share most of their letters but differ in 4 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 43033, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
least is recorded at frequency rank #42,429, classified as averb, pronounced \liːst\. liste is at rank #604, tagged as anoun, pronounced \list\.
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 43033, this pair ranks #221,134 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of least vs liste
Shared letters: elst. Private to "least": a. Private to "liste": i.
"least" · 5 letters · shape CVVCC · "liste" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "least" and "liste" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "least" vs "liste" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
You've separated the homophone pair "least" / "liste". Follow the links when you need the full entry or a neighbour that trips the same ear.
- Full dictionary entry for "least" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "liste" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #221,134 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "least" and "liste" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "least vs leste". 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 #221,134 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.