Which to use
“lire” and “list” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #491
- “lire” frequency rank
- #14,077
- “list” frequency rank
- 14568
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lire | list |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Interpréter des informations écrites sous forme de mots ou de dessins sur un support. | Deuxième personne du singulier de l’impératif présent de listen. |
Where the eye mixes lire and list
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. lire (CVCV) and list (CVCC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between lire and list
A purely visual mix-up. lire (\liʁ\) and list (\lɪst\) 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 14568, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
lire is recorded at frequency rank #491, classified as averb, pronounced \liʁ\. list is at rank #14,077, tagged as averb, pronounced \lɪst\.
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 14568, this pair ranks #396,104 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of lire vs list
Shared letters: il. Private to "lire": er. Private to "list": st.
"lire" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "list" · 4 letters · shape CVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "lire" for "list" ever safe?
Frequency check: "lire" vs "list" - which ranks higher?
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 "lire" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "list" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #396,104 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "lire" and "list" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "leste vs list". 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 #396,104 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.