questionnévsquestionnerWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#29,499
“questionné” frequency rank
#15,734
“questionner” frequency rank
45233
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature questionné questionner
Definition Participe passé masculin singulier de questionner. Interroger quelqu’un, lui poser des questions.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set questionné and questionner apart are highlighted. They share 9 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

10 ch
questionné
11 ch
questionner

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

This is the hard kind. questionné and questionner are pronounced identically (\kɛs.tjɔ.ne\) and both work as averb. 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 45233, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

questionné is recorded at frequency rank #29,499, classified as averb, pronounced \kɛs.tjɔ.ne\. questionner is at rank #15,734, tagged as averb, pronounced \kɛs.tjɔ.ne\.

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 45233, this pair ranks #204,322 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of questionné vs questionner

Shared letters: einoqstu. Private to "questionné": é. Private to "questionner": r.

"questionné" · 10 letters · shape CVVCCVVCCV  ·  "questionner" · 11 letters · shape CVVCCVVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • questionnerqeustionner · qquestionner · quesitonner · quesstionner · questinoner · questionenr · questioner · questionnerr

Frequency comparison

questionné#29,499
questionner#15,734

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "questionné" and "questionner" be used interchangeably?
No. They are pronounced the same (\kɛs.tjɔ.ne\), which is exactly why they get swapped in writing, but the dictionary meanings above are different, and pronunciation is no guide here.
Which is more common, "questionné" or "questionner"?
"questionner" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #15,734 in our French list, against #29,499 for "questionné". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering questionné vs questionner

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 “questionné” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list