Which to use
“mode” and “module” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #585
- “mode” frequency rank
- #8,275
- “module” frequency rank
- 8860
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | mode | module |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Manière de voir ou d’agir ; fantaisie. | Mesure arbitraire servant à établir les rapports de proportion entre toutes les parties d’un ouvrage d’architecture. |
Where the eye mixes mode and module
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses mode with module
A purely visual mix-up. mode (\mɔd\) and module (\mo.dyl\) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 8860, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
mode is recorded at frequency rank #585, classified as anoun, pronounced \mɔd\. module is at rank #8,275, tagged as anoun, pronounced \mo.dyl\.
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 8860, this pair ranks #418,629 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of mode vs module
Shared letters: demo. Private to "mode": -. Private to "module": lu.
"mode" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "module" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "mode" for "module" ever safe?
Which is more common, "mode" or "module"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "mode" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "module" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #418,629 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "mode" and "module" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "module vs moquée". 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 #418,629 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.