modérervsmontrerWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#24,678
“modérer” frequency rank
#984
“montrer” frequency rank
25662
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature modérer montrer
Definition Diminuer ; adoucir ; tempérer ; rendre moins violent ; tenir dans de justes limites. Faire voir ; exposer aux regards.

Where the spellings diverge

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

7 ch
modérer
7 ch
montrer

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. modérer (\mɔ.de.ʁe\) and montrer (\mɔ̃.tʁe\) 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 25662, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

modérer is recorded at frequency rank #24,678, classified as averb, pronounced \mɔ.de.ʁe\. montrer is at rank #984, tagged as averb, pronounced \mɔ̃.tʁe\.

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 25662, this pair ranks #339,581 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of modérer vs montrer

Shared letters: emor. Private to "modérer": . Private to "montrer": nt.

"modérer" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC  ·  "montrer" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • montrermmontrer · mnotrer · monntrer · monrter · monterr · montrerr · montrrer · monttrer

Frequency comparison

modérer#24,678
montrer#984

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "modérer" and "montrer" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\mɔ.de.ʁe\ versus \mɔ̃.tʁe\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "modérer" or "montrer"?
"montrer" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #984 in our French list, against #24,678 for "modérer". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering modérer vs montrer

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 “modérer” 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