Which to use
“pré” and “pri” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,849
- “pré” frequency rank
- #26,137
- “pri” frequency rank
- 28986
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pré | pri |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Champ où pousse de l’herbe (naturelle ou cultivée), où l’on recueille du foin, ou qui sert au pâturage. | Argile, glaise. |
Where the eye mixes pré and pri
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between pré and pri
A purely visual mix-up. pré (\pʁe\) and pri (\ˈpriː\) 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 a single letter - é in “pré” becomes i in “pri”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 28986, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pré is recorded at frequency rank #2,849, classified as anoun, pronounced \pʁe\. pri is at rank #26,137, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ˈpriː\.
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 28986, this pair ranks #319,440 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of pré vs pri
Shared letters: pr. Private to "pré": é. Private to "pri": i.
"pré" · 3 letters · shape CCV · "pri" · 3 letters · shape CCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "pré" and "pri" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "pré" or "pri"?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "pré" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "pri" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #319,440 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "pré" and "pri" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "prep vs pri". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #319,440 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.