Which to use
“positions” and “potions” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,030
- “positions” frequency rank
- #36,105
- “potions” frequency rank
- 39135
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | positions | potions |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Pluriel de position. | Pluriel de potion. |
Where the eye mixes positions and potions
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. positions runs 9 letters (CVCVCVVCC) against potions's 7 (CVCVVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses positions with potions
A purely visual mix-up. positions (\pɔ.zi.sjɔ̃\) and potions (\pɔ.sjɔ̃\) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39135, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
positions is recorded at frequency rank #3,030, classified as anoun, pronounced \pɔ.zi.sjɔ̃\. potions is at rank #36,105, tagged as anoun, pronounced \pɔ.sjɔ̃\.
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 39135, this pair ranks #250,250 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of positions vs potions
Shared letters: inopst. Private to "positions": -. Private to "potions": -.
"positions" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCVVCC · "potions" · 7 letters · shape CVCVVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "positions" and "potions" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "positions" vs "potions" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "positions" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "potions" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #250,250 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "positions" and "potions" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "potiers vs potions". 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 #250,250 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.