Which to use
“prescrire” and “proscrire” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #15,463
- “prescrire” frequency rank
- #34,691
- “proscrire” frequency rank
- 50154
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | prescrire | proscrire |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Ordonner, recommander ou marquer précisément ce qu’on veut qui soit fait. | Condamner à mort sans forme judiciaire et en publiant simplement par une affiche le nom des condamnés. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set prescrire and proscrire apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
A purely visual mix-up. prescrire (\pʁɛs.kʁiʁ\) and proscrire (\pʁɔs.kʁiʁ\) 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 - e in “prescrire” becomes o in “proscrire”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 50154, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
prescrire is recorded at frequency rank #15,463, classified as averb, pronounced \pʁɛs.kʁiʁ\. proscrire is at rank #34,691, tagged as averb, pronounced \pʁɔs.kʁiʁ\.
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 50154, this pair ranks #164,860 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of prescrire vs proscrire
Shared letters: ceiprs. Private to "prescrire": -. Private to "proscrire": o.
"prescrire" · 9 letters · shape CCVCCCVCV · "proscrire" · 9 letters · shape CCVCCCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "prescrire" and "proscrire" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "prescrire" or "proscrire"?
Remembering prescrire vs proscrire
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 “prescrire” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable