Which to use
“pay” is a verb and “payée” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #18,553
- “pay” frequency rank
- #8,902
- “payée” frequency rank
- 27455
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pay | payée |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Payer, verser une somme pour régler un dû. | Féminin singulier de payé. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set pay and payée apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: pay is \peɪ\ while payée is \pɛ.je\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “pay” sits inside “payée”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 27455, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pay is recorded at frequency rank #18,553, classified as averb, pronounced \peɪ\. payée is at rank #8,902, tagged as anadj, pronounced \pɛ.je\.
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 27455, this pair ranks #328,836 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of pay vs payée
Shared letters: apy. Private to "pay": -. Private to "payée": eé.
"pay" · 3 letters · shape CVV · "payée" · 5 letters · shape CVVVV
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "pay" and "payée" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "pay" or "payée"?
Remembering pay vs payée
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “pay”; for an adjective, it's “payée”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “pay” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable