réfugiés vs refusées, What's the Difference?

Which to use

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

#3,421
“réfugiés” frequency rank: #35,240
“refusées” frequency rank: 38661
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	réfugiés	refusées
Definition	Masculin pluriel de réfugié.	Féminin pluriel de refusé.

Where the spellings diverge

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

8 ch

réfugiés

8 ch

refusées

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. réfugiés (\ʁe.fy.ʒje\) and refusées (\ʁə.fy.ze\) 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 4 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 38661, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

réfugiés is recorded at frequency rank #3,421, classified as anadj, pronounced \ʁe.fy.ʒje\. refusées is at rank #35,240, tagged as anadj, pronounced \ʁə.fy.ze\.

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 38661, this pair ranks #253,694 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of réfugiés vs refusées

Shared letters: frsué. Private to "réfugiés": gi. Private to "refusées": e.

"réfugiés" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCVVC · "refusées" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCVVC

Frequency comparison

réfugiés#3,421

refusées#35,240

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "réfugiés" and "refusées" be used interchangeably?

No. They are said differently (\ʁe.fy.ʒje\ versus \ʁə.fy.ze\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.

Which is more common, "réfugiés" or "refusées"?

"réfugiés" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,421 in our French list, against #35,240 for "refusées". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering réfugiés vs refusées

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 “réfugiés” entry
Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable