répondeur vs répondu, What's the Difference?

Which to use

“répondeur” is an adjective and “répondu” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#24,019
“répondeur” frequency rank: #2,017
“répondu” frequency rank: 26036
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	répondeur	répondu
Definition	Qui a l’habitude de répondre, de répliquer à un reproche, à un ordre.	Participe passé masculin singulier de répondre.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set répondeur and répondu apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch

répondeur

7 ch

répondu

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: répondeur is \ʁe.pɔ̃.dœʁ\ while répondu is \ʁe.pɔ̃.dy\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 26036, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

répondeur is recorded at frequency rank #24,019, classified as anadj, pronounced \ʁe.pɔ̃.dœʁ\. répondu is at rank #2,017, tagged as averb, pronounced \ʁe.pɔ̃.dy\.

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 26036, this pair ranks #337,482 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of répondeur vs répondu

Shared letters: dnoprué. Private to "répondeur": e. Private to "répondu": -.

"répondeur" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVVC · "répondu" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV

Frequency comparison

répondeur#24,019

répondu#2,017

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "répondeur" and "répondu" be used interchangeably?

No - they are not even the same part of speech. "répondeur" is an adjective and "répondu" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.

Which is more common, "répondeur" or "répondu"?

"répondu" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,017 in our French list, against #24,019 for "répondeur". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering répondeur vs répondu

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “répondeur”; for a verb, it's “répondu”.
See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “répondeur” entry
Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable