Which to use
“répondez” and “répondu” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #10,575
- “répondez” frequency rank
- #2,017
- “répondu” frequency rank
- 12592
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | répondez | répondu |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Deuxième personne du pluriel de l’indicatif présent de répondre. | Participe passé masculin singulier de répondre. |
Where the eye mixes répondez and répondu
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. répondez runs 8 letters (CVCVCCVC) against répondu's 7 (CVCVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses répondez with répondu
A purely visual mix-up. répondez (\ʁe.pɔ̃.de\) and répondu (\ʁe.pɔ̃.dy\) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 12592, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
répondez is recorded at frequency rank #10,575, classified as averb, pronounced \ʁe.pɔ̃.de\. 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 12592, this pair ranks #404,599 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of répondez vs répondu
Shared letters: dnopré. Private to "répondez": ez. Private to "répondu": u.
"répondez" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC · "répondu" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "répondez" and "répondu" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary French text, does "répondez" or "répondu" show up more?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "répondez" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "répondu" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #404,599 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "répondez" and "répondu" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "renoncez vs répondez". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #404,599 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.