Which to use
“parait” and “paraître” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #4,261
- “parait” frequency rank
- #3,700
- “paraître” frequency rank
- 7961
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | parait | paraître |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Troisième personne du singulier de l’imparfait du verbe parer. | Être exposé à la vue ; se faire ou se laisser voir ; se manifester. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set parait and paraître apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
A purely visual mix-up. parait (\pa.ʁɛ\) and paraître (\pa.ʁɛtʁ\) 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 7961, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
parait is recorded at frequency rank #4,261, classified as averb, pronounced \pa.ʁɛ\. paraître is at rank #3,700, tagged as averb, pronounced \pa.ʁɛtʁ\.
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 7961, this pair ranks #421,576 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of parait vs paraître
Shared letters: aprt. Private to "parait": i. Private to "paraître": eî.
"parait" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC · "paraître" · 8 letters · shape CVCVVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- parait ← aprait · paarit · paraitt · parati · pariat · parrait · pparait · praait
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "parait" and "paraître" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "parait" or "paraître"?
Remembering parait vs paraître
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 “parait” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable