lemvslepWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: lem is a noun, lep is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“lem” is a noun and “lep” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#40,348
“lem” frequency rank
#49,766
“lep” frequency rank
90114
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature lem lep
Definition Membre, partie du corps. Beau, agréable.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set lem and lep apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

3 ch
lem
3 ch
lep

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: lem is anoun and lepanadjective. On the page they differ by a single letter - m in “lem” becomes p in “lep”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 90114, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

lem is recorded at frequency rank #40,348, classified as anoun. 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 90114, this pair ranks #5,136 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of lem vs lep

Shared letters: el. Private to "lem": m. Private to "lep": p.

"lem" · 3 letters · shape CVC  ·  "lep" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Frequency comparison

lem#40,348
lep#49,766

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "lem" and "lep" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "lem" is a noun and "lep" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "lem" or "lep"?
"lem" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #40,348 in our French list, against #49,766 for "lep". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering lem vs lep

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “lem”; for an adjective, it's “lep”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “lem” 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