Which to use
“réjouir” is a verb and “retour” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #12,046
- “réjouir” frequency rank
- #403
- “retour” frequency rank
- 12449
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | réjouir | retour |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Donner de la joie. | Tour en sens contraire. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set réjouir and retour apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: réjouir is \ʁe.ʒwiʁ\ while retour is \ʁə.tuʁ\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 12449, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
réjouir is recorded at frequency rank #12,046, classified as averb, pronounced \ʁe.ʒwiʁ\. retour is at rank #403, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ʁə.tuʁ\.
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 12449, this pair ranks #405,234 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of réjouir vs retour
Shared letters: oru. Private to "réjouir": ijé. Private to "retour": et.
"réjouir" · 7 letters · shape CVCVVVC · "retour" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- retour ← ertour · reotur · retoru · retourr · rettour · retuor · rretour · rteour
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "réjouir" and "retour" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "réjouir" or "retour"?
Remembering réjouir vs retour
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “réjouir”; for a noun, it's “retour”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “réjouir” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable