loisirvsloisirsWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#8,121
“loisir” frequency rank
#5,361
“loisirs” frequency rank
13482
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature loisir loisirs
Definition Temps libre dont on peut disposer en dehors de ses occupations habituelles (emploi, gestion de la maison, éducation des enfants, etc.) et des contraintes qu’elles imposent (transports par exemple). Pluriel de loisir.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set loisir and loisirs apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
loisir
7 ch
loisirs

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

This is the hard kind. loisir and loisirs are pronounced identically (\lwa.ziʁ\) and both work as anoun. Neither the ear nor the grammar will rescue you; only the meaning does, so the glosses below are the whole decision. They differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “loisir” sits inside “loisirs”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 13482, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

loisir is recorded at frequency rank #8,121, classified as anoun, pronounced \lwa.ziʁ\. loisirs is at rank #5,361, tagged as anoun, pronounced \lwa.ziʁ\.

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 13482, this pair ranks #400,846 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of loisir vs loisirs

Shared letters: ilors. Private to "loisir": -. Private to "loisirs": -.

"loisir" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC  ·  "loisirs" · 7 letters · shape CVVCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • loisirliosir · lloisir · loiisr · loisirr · loisri · loissir · losiir · olisir
  • loisirsliosirs · lloisirs · loiisrs · loisirrs · loisirss · loisisr · loisris · loissirs

Frequency comparison

loisir#8,121
loisirs#5,361

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "loisir" and "loisirs" be used interchangeably?
No. They are pronounced the same (\lwa.ziʁ\), which is exactly why they get swapped in writing, but the dictionary meanings above are different, and pronunciation is no guide here.
Which is more common, "loisir" or "loisirs"?
"loisirs" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,361 in our French list, against #8,121 for "loisir". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering loisir vs loisirs

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 “loisir” 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