Which to use
“point” and “port” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #217
- “point” frequency rank
- #1,169
- “port” frequency rank
- 1386
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | point | port |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Action de piquer dans un tissu avec une aiguille enfilée ou résultat de cette action, piqûre. | Havre côtier, refuge ou abri pour les bateaux les protégeant des vents et des tempêtes. |
Where the eye mixes point and port
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses point with port
A purely visual mix-up. point (\pwɛ̃\) and port (\pɔʁ\) 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 1386, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
point is recorded at frequency rank #217, classified as anoun, pronounced \pwɛ̃\. port is at rank #1,169, tagged as anoun, pronounced \pɔʁ\.
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 1386, this pair ranks #438,157 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of point vs port
Shared letters: opt. Private to "point": in. Private to "port": r.
"point" · 5 letters · shape CVVCC · "port" · 4 letters · shape CVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "point" and "port" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "point" or "port"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "point" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "port" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #438,157 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "point" and "port" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "PMR vs port". 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 #438,157 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.