Which to use
“pèsent” is a verb and “présente” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #14,775
- “pèsent” frequency rank
- #620
- “présente” frequency rank
- 15395
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pèsent | présente |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Troisième personne du pluriel du présent de l’indicatif de peser. | Lettre que l’on envoie. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set pèsent and présente apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: pèsent is \pɛz\ while présente is \pʁe.zɑ̃t\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 15395, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pèsent is recorded at frequency rank #14,775, classified as averb, pronounced \pɛz\. présente is at rank #620, tagged as anoun, pronounced \pʁe.zɑ̃t\.
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 15395, this pair ranks #392,550 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of pèsent vs présente
Shared letters: enpst. Private to "pèsent": è. Private to "présente": ré.
"pèsent" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC · "présente" · 8 letters · shape CCVCVCCV
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "pèsent" and "présente" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "pèsent" or "présente"?
Remembering pèsent vs présente
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “pèsent”; for a noun, it's “présente”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “pèsent” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable