promotionvsproportionWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“promotion” and “proportion” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#2,379
“promotion” frequency rank
#4,522
“proportion” frequency rank
6901
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature promotion proportion
Definition Action par laquelle on élève à la fois plusieurs personnes à un même grade, à une même dignité. Rapport et convenance des parties entre elles et avec leur tout.

Where the spellings diverge

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

9 ch
promotion
10 ch
proportion

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. promotion (\pʁɔ.mɔ.sjɔ̃\) and proportion (\pʁɔ.pɔʁ.sjɔ̃\) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 6901, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

promotion is recorded at frequency rank #2,379, classified as anoun, pronounced \pʁɔ.mɔ.sjɔ̃\. proportion is at rank #4,522, tagged as anoun, pronounced \pʁɔ.pɔʁ.sjɔ̃\.

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 6901, this pair ranks #424,884 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of promotion vs proportion

Shared letters: inoprt. Private to "promotion": m. Private to "proportion": -.

"promotion" · 9 letters · shape CCVCVCVVC  ·  "proportion" · 10 letters · shape CCVCVCCVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • promotionpormotion · ppromotion · prmootion · prommotion · promoiton · promotino · promotionn · promotoin
  • proportionporportion · pproportion · prooprtion · proporiton · proporrtion · proportino · proportionn · proportoin

Frequency comparison

promotion#2,379
proportion#4,522

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "promotion" and "proportion" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\pʁɔ.mɔ.sjɔ̃\ versus \pʁɔ.pɔʁ.sjɔ̃\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "promotion" or "proportion"?
"promotion" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,379 in our French list, against #4,522 for "proportion". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering promotion vs proportion

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 “promotion” 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