Which to use
“pilon” and “pions” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #24,716
- “pilon” frequency rank
- #18,827
- “pions” frequency rank
- 43543
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pilon | pions |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Instrument dont on se sert pour piler quelque chose dans un mortier, pour écraser quelque chose dans un mortier. | Pluriel de pion. |
Where the eye mixes pilon and pions
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: pilon vs pions
A purely visual mix-up. pilon (\pi.lɔ̃\) and pions (\pjɔ̃\) 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 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 43543, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pilon is recorded at frequency rank #24,716, classified as anoun, pronounced \pi.lɔ̃\. pions is at rank #18,827, tagged as anoun, pronounced \pjɔ̃\.
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 43543, this pair ranks #217,265 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of pilon vs pions
Shared letters: inop. Private to "pilon": l. Private to "pions": s.
"pilon" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "pions" · 5 letters · shape CVVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "pilon" and "pions" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "pilon" vs "pions" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "pilon" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "pions" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #217,265 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "pilon" and "pions" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "pilon vs pio". 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 #217,265 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.