résignervsrésilierConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#29,134
“résigner” frequency rank
#22,410
“résilier” frequency rank
51544
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature résigner résilier
Definition Se démettre, remettre. Il s’entendait ordinairement d’un bénéfice. Annuler, mettre fin à un contrat.

Where the eye mixes résigner and résilier

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.

8 ch
résigner
8 ch
résilier

Look-alike desk: résigner vs résilier

A purely visual mix-up. résigner (\ʁe.zi.ɲe\) and résilier (\ʁe.zi.lje\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 51544, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

résigner is recorded at frequency rank #29,134, classified as averb, pronounced \ʁe.zi.ɲe\. résilier is at rank #22,410, tagged as averb, pronounced \ʁe.zi.lje\.

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 51544, this pair ranks #154,211 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of résigner vs résilier

Shared letters: eirsé. Private to "résigner": gn. Private to "résilier": l.

"résigner" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC  ·  "résilier" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCVVC

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "résigner" and "résilier" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently (\ʁe.zi.ɲe\ versus \ʁe.zi.lje\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "résigner" or "résilier"?
"résilier" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #22,410 in our French list, against #29,134 for "résigner". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Eye-level mix-up between "résigner" and "résilier" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.

  • Full dictionary entry for "résigner" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "résilier" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #154,211 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "résigner" and "résilier" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "résigner vs résines". Nearby pair

Confusion rank #154,211 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list