pêchevspécherWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: pêche is a noun, pécher is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“pêche” is a noun and “pécher” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#2,639
“pêche” frequency rank
#37,988
“pécher” frequency rank
40627
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature pêche pécher
Definition Fruit du pêcher, parfumé et d’un goût savoureux, dont le très dur noyau est enrobé par une chair jaune ou blanche et une fine peau veloutée de teinte jaune et rouge-orange. Transgresser la loi divine ou religieuse.

Where the spellings diverge

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

5 ch
pêche
6 ch
pécher

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: pêche is \pɛʃ\ while pécher is \pe.ʃe\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 40627, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

pêche is recorded at frequency rank #2,639, classified as anoun, pronounced \pɛʃ\. pécher is at rank #37,988, tagged as averb, pronounced \pe.ʃe\.

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 40627, this pair ranks #239,149 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of pêche vs pécher

Shared letters: cehp. Private to "pêche": ê. Private to "pécher": .

"pêche" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV  ·  "pécher" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Frequency comparison

pêche#2,639
pécher#37,988

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "pêche" and "pécher" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "pêche" is a noun and "pécher" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "pêche" or "pécher"?
"pêche" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,639 in our French list, against #37,988 for "pécher". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering pêche vs pécher

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “pêche”; for a verb, it's “pécher”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “pêche” 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