méritéesvsméritonsWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#48,674
“méritées” frequency rank
#49,811
“méritons” frequency rank
98485
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature méritées méritons
Definition Participe passé féminin pluriel de mériter. Première personne du pluriel du présent de l’indicatif de mériter.

Where the spellings diverge

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

8 ch
méritées
8 ch
méritons

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. méritées (\me.ʁi.te\) and méritons (\me.ʁi.tɔ̃\) 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 98485, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

méritées is recorded at frequency rank #48,674, classified as averb, pronounced \me.ʁi.te\. méritons is at rank #49,811, tagged as averb, pronounced \me.ʁi.tɔ̃\.

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 98485, this pair ranks #103 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of méritées vs méritons

Shared letters: imrsté. Private to "méritées": e. Private to "méritons": no.

"méritées" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCVVC  ·  "méritons" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCVCC

Frequency comparison

méritées#48,674
méritons#49,811

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "méritées" and "méritons" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\me.ʁi.te\ versus \me.ʁi.tɔ̃\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "méritées" or "méritons"?
"méritées" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #48,674 in our French list, against #49,811 for "méritons". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering méritées vs méritons

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 “méritées” 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