Which to use
“repassé” is a verb and “repoussé” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #27,940
- “repassé” frequency rank
- #11,289
- “repoussé” frequency rank
- 39229
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | repassé | repoussé |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Participe passé masculin singulier de repasser. | Qualifie la matière en plaque (cuir ou métal), que l’on a décoré en le travaillant à l’envers, au marteau ou avec des instruments spéciaux. |
Where the eye mixes repassé and repoussé
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. repassé runs 7 letters (CVCVCCV) against repoussé's 8 (CVCVVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses repassé with repoussé
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: repassé is \ʁə.pa.se\ while repoussé is \ʁə.pu.se\. 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 adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39229, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
repassé is recorded at frequency rank #27,940, classified as averb, pronounced \ʁə.pa.se\. repoussé is at rank #11,289, tagged as anadj, pronounced \ʁə.pu.se\.
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 39229, this pair ranks #249,518 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of repassé vs repoussé
Shared letters: eprsé. Private to "repassé": a. Private to "repoussé": ou.
"repassé" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV · "repoussé" · 8 letters · shape CVCVVCCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "repassé" and "repoussé" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "repassé" vs "repoussé" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "repassé" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "repoussé" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #249,518 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "repassé" and "repoussé" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "reparlé vs repassé". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #249,518 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.