Which to use
“pol” and “pts” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #12,446
- “pol” frequency rank
- #13,041
- “pts” frequency rank
- 25487
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pol | pts |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Sexe. | Pluriel de pᵗ. |
Where the eye mixes pol and pts
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Visual trap between pol and pts
A purely visual mix-up. pol (\pɔl\) and pts (\pɔ̃\) 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 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 25487, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pol is recorded at frequency rank #12,446, classified as anoun, pronounced \pɔl\. pts is at rank #13,041, tagged as anoun, pronounced \pɔ̃\.
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 25487, this pair ranks #340,581 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of pol vs pts
Shared letters: p. Private to "pol": lo. Private to "pts": st.
"pol" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "pts" · 3 letters · shape CCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "pol" for "pts" ever safe?
In ordinary French text, does "pol" or "pts" show up more?
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 "pol" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "pts" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #340,581 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "pol" and "pts" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "pio vs pts". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #340,581 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.