mariésvsmortesWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#7,593
“mariés” frequency rank
#7,207
“mortes” frequency rank
14800
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature mariés mortes
Definition Masculin pluriel de l’adjectif marié. Féminin pluriel de mort.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set mariés and mortes apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
mariés
6 ch
mortes

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. mariés (\ma.ʁje\) and mortes (\mɔʁt\) 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 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 14800, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

mariés is recorded at frequency rank #7,593, classified as anadj, pronounced \ma.ʁje\. mortes is at rank #7,207, tagged as anadj, pronounced \mɔʁt\.

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 14800, this pair ranks #395,168 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of mariés vs mortes

Shared letters: mrs. Private to "mariés": aié. Private to "mortes": eot.

"mariés" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC  ·  "mortes" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • mortesmmortes · morets · morrtes · mortess · mortse · morttes · motres · mrotes

Frequency comparison

mariés#7,593
mortes#7,207

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "mariés" and "mortes" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\ma.ʁje\ versus \mɔʁt\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "mariés" or "mortes"?
"mortes" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #7,207 in our French list, against #7,593 for "mariés". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering mariés vs mortes

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 “mariés” 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