possèdent vs possédez, What's the Difference?

Which to use

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

#5,486
“possèdent” frequency rank: #27,191
“possédez” frequency rank: 32677
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	possèdent	possédez
Definition	Troisième personne du pluriel du présent de l’indicatif de posséder.	Deuxième personne du pluriel du présent de l’indicatif de posséder.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set possèdent and possédez apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch

possèdent

8 ch

possédez

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. possèdent (\pɔ.sɛd\) and possédez (\pɔ.se.de\) 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 32677, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

possèdent is recorded at frequency rank #5,486, classified as averb, pronounced \pɔ.sɛd\. possédez is at rank #27,191, tagged as averb, pronounced \pɔ.se.de\.

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 32677, this pair ranks #295,689 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of possèdent vs possédez

Shared letters: deops. Private to "possèdent": ntè. Private to "possédez": zé.

"possèdent" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCVCC · "possédez" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC

Frequency comparison

possèdent#5,486

possédez#27,191

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "possèdent" and "possédez" be used interchangeably?

No. They are said differently (\pɔ.sɛd\ versus \pɔ.se.de\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.

Which is more common, "possèdent" or "possédez"?

"possèdent" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,486 in our French list, against #27,191 for "possédez". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering possèdent vs possédez

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 “possèdent” entry
Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable