répondevsrépondsWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#14,789
“réponde” frequency rank
#3,797
“réponds” frequency rank
18586
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature réponde réponds
Definition Première personne du singulier du présent du subjonctif de répondre. Première personne du singulier de l’indicatif présent de répondre.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set réponde and réponds apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
réponde
7 ch
réponds

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. réponde (\ʁe.pɔ̃d\) and réponds (\ʁe.pɔ̃\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by a single letter - e in “réponde” becomes s in “réponds”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 18586, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

réponde is recorded at frequency rank #14,789, classified as averb, pronounced \ʁe.pɔ̃d\. réponds is at rank #3,797, tagged as averb, pronounced \ʁe.pɔ̃\.

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 18586, this pair ranks #377,555 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of réponde vs réponds

Shared letters: dnopré. Private to "réponde": e. Private to "réponds": s.

"réponde" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV  ·  "réponds" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCC

Frequency comparison

réponde#14,789
réponds#3,797

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "réponde" and "réponds" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\ʁe.pɔ̃d\ versus \ʁe.pɔ̃\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "réponde" or "réponds"?
"réponds" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,797 in our French list, against #14,789 for "réponde". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering réponde vs réponds

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 “réponde” 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