Which to use
“mare” is a noun and “mat” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #11,992
- “mare” frequency rank
- #6,319
- “mat” frequency rank
- 18311
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | mare | mat |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Petit amas d’eau dormante qui se forme naturellement par l’abaissement du sol, ou qu’on produit artificiellement dans les villages et dans les fermes, pour des usages communs ou domestiques. | Qui n’a pas d’éclat, qui ne réfléchit pas la lumière. Se dit surtout des objets de métal qui n’ont pas reçu le poli définitif ou auxquels on a donné une patine spéciale. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set mare and mat apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
mare and mat form a confusable pair in the French index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 18311, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
mare is recorded at frequency rank #11,992, classified as anoun, pronounced \mɑʁ\. mat is at rank #6,319, tagged as anadj, pronounced \ma\.
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 18311, this pair ranks #378,973 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "mare" and "mat" be used interchangeably?
Remembering mare vs mat
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “mare”; for an adjective, it's “mat”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “mare” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable