paonvspatronWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#28,277
“paon” frequency rank
#1,710
“patron” frequency rank
29987
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature paon patron
Definition Grand oiseau domesticable, de l’ordre des gallinacés, dont le cri est strident, qui a un beau plumage mordoré, une petite aigrette sur la tête et dont la queue se compose de longues plumes couvertes d’ocelles, marques de différentes couleurs en forme d’yeux. Patricien ou riche plébéien de la Rome antique, qui accordait sa protection à des citoyens plus pauvres constituant sa clientèle.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set paon and patron apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
paon
6 ch
patron

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. paon (\pɑ̃\) and patron (\pa.tʁɔ̃\) 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 29987, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

paon is recorded at frequency rank #28,277, classified as anoun, pronounced \pɑ̃\. patron is at rank #1,710, tagged as anoun, pronounced \pa.tʁɔ̃\.

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 29987, this pair ranks #313,199 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of paon vs patron

Shared letters: anop. Private to "paon": -. Private to "patron": rt.

"paon" · 4 letters · shape CVVC  ·  "patron" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • paonapon · pano · paonn · poan · ppaon
  • patronaptron · parton · patorn · patrno · patronn · patrron · pattron · ppatron

Frequency comparison

paon#28,277
patron#1,710

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "paon" and "patron" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\pɑ̃\ versus \pa.tʁɔ̃\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "paon" or "patron"?
"patron" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,710 in our French list, against #28,277 for "paon". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering paon vs patron

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 “paon” 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