réactionsvsrelationsWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#3,358
“réactions” frequency rank
#1,011
“relations” frequency rank
4369
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature réactions relations
Definition Pluriel de réaction. Pluriel de relation.

Where the eye mixes réactions and relations

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. réactions (CVVCCVVCC) and relations (CVCVCVVCC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.

9 ch
réactions
9 ch
relations

Why the eye confuses réactions with relations

A purely visual mix-up. réactions (\ʁe.ak.sjɔ̃\) and relations (\ʁə.la.sjɔ̃\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 4369, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

réactions is recorded at frequency rank #3,358, classified as anoun, pronounced \ʁe.ak.sjɔ̃\. relations is at rank #1,011, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ʁə.la.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 4369, this pair ranks #431,774 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of réactions vs relations

Shared letters: ainorst. Private to "réactions": cé. Private to "relations": el.

"réactions" · 9 letters · shape CVVCCVVCC  ·  "relations" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCVVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • relations ← erlations · realtions · relaitons · relatinos · relationns · relationss · relatiosn · relatoins

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "réactions" and "relations" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently (\ʁe.ak.sjɔ̃\ versus \ʁə.la.sjɔ̃\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "réactions" vs "relations" - which ranks higher?
"relations" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,011 in our French list, against #3,358 for "réactions". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "réactions" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "relations" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #431,774 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "réactions" and "relations" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "régulations vs relations". Nearby pair
  • Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes

Confusion rank #431,774 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list