pentesvspètesWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“pentes” and “pètes” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#12,832
“pentes” frequency rank
#48,737
“pètes” frequency rank
61569
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature pentes pètes
Definition Pluriel de pente. Pluriel de pète.

Where the spellings diverge

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

6 ch
pentes
5 ch
pètes

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. pentes (\pɑ̃t\) and pètes (\pɛt\) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 61569, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

pentes is recorded at frequency rank #12,832, classified as anoun, pronounced \pɑ̃t\. pètes is at rank #48,737, tagged as anoun, pronounced \pɛt\.

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 61569, this pair ranks #91,544 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of pentes vs pètes

Shared letters: epst. Private to "pentes": n. Private to "pètes": è.

"pentes" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "pètes" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • pentesepntes · penets · penntes · pentess · pentse · penttes · petnes · pnetes

Frequency comparison

pentes#12,832
pètes#48,737

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "pentes" and "pètes" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\pɑ̃t\ versus \pɛt\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "pentes" or "pètes"?
"pentes" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #12,832 in our French list, against #48,737 for "pètes". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering pentes vs pètes

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 “pentes” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list