Which to use
“préconisait” and “préconisent” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #44,651
- “préconisait” frequency rank
- #34,697
- “préconisent” frequency rank
- 79348
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | préconisait | préconisent |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Troisième personne du singulier de l’imparfait de l’indicatif de préconiser. | Troisième personne du pluriel du présent de l’indicatif de préconiser. |
Where the eye mixes préconisait and préconisent
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence. préconisait (CCVCVCVCVVC) and préconisent (CCVCVCVCVCC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses préconisait with préconisent
A purely visual mix-up. préconisait (\pʁe.kɔ.ni.zɛ\) and préconisent (\pʁe.kɔ.niz\) 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 79348, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
préconisait is recorded at frequency rank #44,651, classified as averb, pronounced \pʁe.kɔ.ni.zɛ\. préconisent is at rank #34,697, tagged as averb, pronounced \pʁe.kɔ.niz\.
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 79348, this pair ranks #23,522 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of préconisait vs préconisent
Shared letters: cinoprsté. Private to "préconisait": a. Private to "préconisent": e.
"préconisait" · 11 letters · shape CCVCVCVCVVC · "préconisent" · 11 letters · shape CCVCVCVCVCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "préconisait" for "préconisent" ever safe?
Frequency check: "préconisait" vs "préconisent" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "préconisait" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "préconisent" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #23,522 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "préconisait" and "préconisent" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "préconisent vs préconiser". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #23,522 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.