pertes vs pertuis, What's the Difference?

Which to use

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

#3,485
“pertes” frequency rank: #44,627
“pertuis” frequency rank: 48112
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	pertes	pertuis
Definition	Pluriel de perte.	Ouverture ; trou.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set pertes and pertuis apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch

pertes

7 ch

pertuis

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. pertes (\pɛʁt\) and pertuis (\pɛʁ.tɥi\) 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 48112, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

pertes is recorded at frequency rank #3,485, classified as anoun, pronounced \pɛʁt\. pertuis is at rank #44,627, tagged as anoun, pronounced \pɛʁ.tɥi\.

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 48112, this pair ranks #181,522 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of pertes vs pertuis

Shared letters: eprst. Private to "pertes": -. Private to "pertuis": iu.

"pertes" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "pertuis" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

pertes ← eprtes · perets · perrtes · pertess · pertse · perttes · petres · ppertes
pertuis ← eprtuis · perrtuis · pertius · perttuis · pertuiss · pertusi · perutis · petruis

Frequency comparison

pertes#3,485

pertuis#44,627

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "pertes" and "pertuis" be used interchangeably?

No. They are said differently (\pɛʁt\ versus \pɛʁ.tɥi\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.

Which is more common, "pertes" or "pertuis"?

"pertes" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,485 in our French list, against #44,627 for "pertuis". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering pertes vs pertuis

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 “pertes” entry
Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable