marquervsmasqueWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: marquer is a verb, masque is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“marquer” is a verb and “masque” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#3,778
“marquer” frequency rank
#3,938
“masque” frequency rank
7716
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature marquer masque
Definition Distinguer une chose d’une autre au moyen d’une marque. Faux visage de carton ou d’autre matière, dont on se couvre la figure pour se déguiser, pour accomplir un rituel, dissimuler son identité ou bien par jeu.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set marquer and masque apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
marquer
6 ch
masque

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

marquer and masque 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 7716, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

marquer is recorded at frequency rank #3,778, classified as averb, pronounced \maʁ.ke\. masque is at rank #3,938, tagged as anoun, pronounced \mask\.

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 7716, this pair ranks #422,336 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Frequency comparison

marquer#3,778
masque#3,938

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "marquer" and "masque" be used interchangeably?
No, "marquer" and "masque" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering marquer vs masque

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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