Which to use
“nés” is an adjective and “non” is an adverb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #4,785
- “nés” frequency rank
- #82
- “non” frequency rank
- 4867
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | nés | non |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Masculin pluriel de né. | Réponse négative. Il marque le désaccord sur une question affirmative et l’accord sur une question négative. |
Where the eye mixes nés and non
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence. nés and non follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Visual trap between nés and non
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: nés is \ne\ while non is \nɔ̃\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs adverb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 4867, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
nés is recorded at frequency rank #4,785, classified as anadj, pronounced \ne\. non is at rank #82, tagged as anadv, pronounced \nɔ̃\.
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 4867, this pair ranks #430,483 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of nés vs non
Shared letters: n. Private to "nés": sé. Private to "non": o.
"nés" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "non" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "nés" and "non" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "nés" vs "non" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "nés" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "non" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #430,483 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "nés" and "non" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "nés vs noués". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #430,483 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.