privilègesvsprivilégierWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: privilèges is a noun, privilégier is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“privilèges” is a noun and “privilégier” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#8,289
“privilèges” frequency rank
#10,554
“privilégier” frequency rank
18843
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature privilèges privilégier
Definition Pluriel de privilège. Gratifier, doter d’un privilège, favoriser.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set privilèges and privilégier apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

10 ch
privilèges
11 ch
privilégier

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: privilèges is \pʁi.vi.lɛʒ\ while privilégier is \pʁi.vi.le.ʒje\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 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 18843, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

privilèges is recorded at frequency rank #8,289, 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 18843, this pair ranks #376,300 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of privilèges vs privilégier

Shared letters: egilprv. Private to "privilèges": . Private to "privilégier": é.

"privilèges" · 10 letters · shape CCVCVCVCVC  ·  "privilégier" · 11 letters · shape CCVCVCVCVVC

Frequency comparison

privilèges#8,289
privilégier#10,554

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "privilèges" and "privilégier" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "privilèges" is a noun and "privilégier" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "privilèges" or "privilégier"?
"privilèges" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #8,289 in our French list, against #10,554 for "privilégier". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering privilèges vs privilégier

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “privilèges”; for a verb, it's “privilégier”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “privilèges” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list