référésvsrépétésWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#37,540
“référés” frequency rank
#17,263
“répétés” frequency rank
54803
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature référés répétés
Definition Pluriel de référé. Pluriel de répété.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set référés and répétés apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
référés
7 ch
répétés

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. référés (\ʁe.fe.ʁe\) and répétés (\ʁe.pe.te\) 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 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 54803, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

référés is recorded at frequency rank #37,540, classified as anoun, pronounced \ʁe.fe.ʁe\. répétés is at rank #17,263, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ʁe.pe.te\.

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 54803, this pair ranks #131,556 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of référés vs répétés

Shared letters: rsé. Private to "référés": f. Private to "répétés": pt.

"référés" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC  ·  "répétés" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVC

Frequency comparison

référés#37,540
répétés#17,263

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "référés" and "répétés" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\ʁe.fe.ʁe\ versus \ʁe.pe.te\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "référés" or "répétés"?
"répétés" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #17,263 in our French list, against #37,540 for "référés". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering référés vs répétés

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 “référés” 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