Which to use
“paysans” and “persans” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #6,122
- “paysans” frequency rank
- #48,712
- “persans” frequency rank
- 54834
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | paysans | persans |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Masculin pluriel de paysan. | Masculin pluriel de persan. |
Where the eye mixes paysans and persans
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. paysans (CVVCVCC) and persans (CVCCVCC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses paysans with persans
A purely visual mix-up. paysans (\pe.i.zɑ̃\) and persans (\pɛʁ.sɑ̃\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 54834, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
paysans is recorded at frequency rank #6,122, classified as anadj, pronounced \pe.i.zɑ̃\. persans is at rank #48,712, tagged as anadj, pronounced \pɛʁ.sɑ̃\.
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 54834, this pair ranks #131,372 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of paysans vs persans
Shared letters: anps. Private to "paysans": y. Private to "persans": er.
"paysans" · 7 letters · shape CVVCVCC · "persans" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "paysans" and "persans" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary French text, does "paysans" or "persans" show up more?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "paysans" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "persans" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #131,372 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "paysans" and "persans" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "persane vs persans". 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 #131,372 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.