Which to use
“privilège” is a noun and “privilégier” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #6,732
- “privilège” frequency rank
- #10,554
- “privilégier” frequency rank
- 17286
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | privilège | privilégier |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Faculté accordée à un particulier ou à une communauté de faire quelque chose ou de jouir de quelque avantage qui n’est pas de droit commun. | Gratifier, doter d’un privilège, favoriser. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set privilège and privilégier apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: privilège is \pʁi.vi.lɛʒ\ while privilégier is \pʁi.vi.le.ʒje\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 17286, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
privilège is recorded at frequency rank #6,732, classified as anoun, pronounced \pʁi.vi.lɛʒ\. privilégier is at rank #10,554, tagged as averb, pronounced \pʁi.vi.le.ʒje\.
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 17286, this pair ranks #383,898 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of privilège vs privilégier
Shared letters: egilprv. Private to "privilège": è. Private to "privilégier": é.
"privilège" · 9 letters · shape CCVCVCVCV · "privilégier" · 11 letters · shape CCVCVCVCVVC
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "privilège" and "privilégier" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "privilège" or "privilégier"?
Remembering privilège vs privilégier
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “privilège”; for a verb, it's “privilégier”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “privilège” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable