planètevsplanètesWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#1,492
“planète” frequency rank
#7,880
“planètes” frequency rank
9372
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature planète planètes
Definition Corps céleste plutôt sphérique plus gros qu’un astéroïde, ne produisant pas de lumière propre, en orbite autour d’une ou plusieurs étoiles. Pluriel de planète.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set planète and planètes apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
planète
8 ch
planètes

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

This is the hard kind. planète and planètes are pronounced identically (\pla.nɛt\) and both work as anoun. Neither the ear nor the grammar will rescue you; only the meaning does, so the glosses below are the whole decision. They differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “planète” sits inside “planètes”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 9372, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

planète is recorded at frequency rank #1,492, classified as anoun, pronounced \pla.nɛt\. planètes is at rank #7,880, tagged as anoun, pronounced \pla.nɛt\.

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 9372, this pair ranks #416,887 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of planète vs planètes

Shared letters: aelnptè. Private to "planète": -. Private to "planètes": s.

"planète" · 7 letters · shape CCVCVCV  ·  "planètes" · 8 letters · shape CCVCVCVC

Frequency comparison

planète#1,492
planètes#7,880

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "planète" and "planètes" be used interchangeably?
No. They are pronounced the same (\pla.nɛt\), which is exactly why they get swapped in writing, but the dictionary meanings above are different, and pronunciation is no guide here.
Which is more common, "planète" or "planètes"?
"planète" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,492 in our French list, against #7,880 for "planètes". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering planète vs planètes

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 “planète” 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