Which to use
“payés” is an adjective and “priés” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #5,591
- “payés” frequency rank
- #27,197
- “priés” frequency rank
- 32788
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | payés | priés |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Masculin pluriel de payé. | Participe passé masculin pluriel de prier. |
Where the eye mixes payés and priés
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. payés (CVVVC) and priés (CCVVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses payés with priés
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: payés is \pɛ.je\ while priés is \pʁi.je\. 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 verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32788, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
payés is recorded at frequency rank #5,591, classified as anadj, pronounced \pɛ.je\. priés is at rank #27,197, tagged as averb, pronounced \pʁi.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 32788, this pair ranks #294,955 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of payés vs priés
Shared letters: psé. Private to "payés": ay. Private to "priés": ir.
"payés" · 5 letters · shape CVVVC · "priés" · 5 letters · shape CCVVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "payés" for "priés" ever safe?
Which is more common, "payés" or "priés"?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "payés" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "priés" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #294,955 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "payés" and "priés" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "prep vs priés". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #294,955 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.