Which to use
“métiers” and “mettes” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,414
- “métiers” frequency rank
- #34,626
- “mettes” frequency rank
- 38040
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | métiers | mettes |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Pluriel de métier. | Pluriel de mette. |
Where the eye mixes métiers and mettes
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. métiers runs 7 letters (CVCVVCC) against mettes's 6 (CVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses métiers with mettes
A purely visual mix-up. métiers (\me.tje\) and mettes (\mɛt\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 38040, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
métiers is recorded at frequency rank #3,414, classified as anoun, pronounced \me.tje\. mettes is at rank #34,626, tagged as anoun, pronounced \mɛt\.
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 38040, this pair ranks #258,094 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of métiers vs mettes
Shared letters: emst. Private to "métiers": iré. Private to "mettes": -.
"métiers" · 7 letters · shape CVCVVCC · "mettes" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- mettes ← emttes · metes · metets · mettess · mettse · mmettes · mtetes
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "métiers" for "mettes" ever safe?
In ordinary French text, does "métiers" or "mettes" show up more?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "métiers" and "mettes" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "métiers" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "mettes" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #258,094 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "métiers" and "mettes" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "mettes vs muettes". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #258,094 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.