Which to use
“préfet” and “préfets” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,707
- “préfet” frequency rank
- #14,772
- “préfets” frequency rank
- 18479
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | préfet | préfets |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Haut magistrat romain chargé de l’administration de la ville. | Pluriel de préfet. |
Same sound, different letters: préfet vs préfets
Muted letters are shared; highlighted letters are the only spelling cue when pronunciation matches. Shared run: 6 letters. préfet runs 6 letters (CCVCVC) against préfets's 7 (CCVCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Same sound, different spelling - préfet / préfets
This is the hard kind. préfet and préfets are pronounced identically (\pʁe.fɛ\) and both work as anoun. Neither the ear nor the grammar will rescue you; only the meaning does, so the glosses below are the whole decision. They differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “préfet” sits inside “préfets”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 18479, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
préfet is recorded at frequency rank #3,707, classified as anoun, pronounced \pʁe.fɛ\. préfets is at rank #14,772, tagged as anoun, pronounced \pʁe.fɛ\.
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 18479, this pair ranks #378,118 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of préfet vs préfets
Shared letters: efprté. Private to "préfet": -. Private to "préfets": s.
"préfet" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC · "préfets" · 7 letters · shape CCVCVCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "préfet" and "préfets" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "préfet" vs "préfets" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Sound matches; spelling doesn't. Use the exits below to lock the right form or check a cousin pair.
- Full dictionary entry for "préfet" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "préfets" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #378,118 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "préfet" and "préfets" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "préfets vs prêtées". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #378,118 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.