Which to use
“pairs” is an adjective and “poils” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #9,209
- “pairs” frequency rank
- #5,692
- “poils” frequency rank
- 14901
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pairs | poils |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Masculin pluriel de pair. | Pluriel de poil. |
Where the eye mixes pairs and poils
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. pairs and poils follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CVVCC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Why the eye confuses pairs with poils
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: pairs is \pɛʁ\ while poils is \pwal\. 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 noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 14901, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pairs is recorded at frequency rank #9,209, classified as anadj, pronounced \pɛʁ\. poils is at rank #5,692, tagged as anoun, pronounced \pwal\.
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 14901, this pair ranks #394,702 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of pairs vs poils
Shared letters: ips. Private to "pairs": ar. Private to "poils": lo.
"pairs" · 5 letters · shape CVVCC · "poils" · 5 letters · shape CVVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "pairs" and "poils" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "pairs" or "poils"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "pairs" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "poils" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #394,702 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "pairs" and "poils" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "pairs vs Pamiers". 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 #394,702 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.