résistancevsrésistantesWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: résistance is a noun, résistantes is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“résistance” is a noun and “résistantes” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#1,935
“résistance” frequency rank
#24,383
“résistantes” frequency rank
26318
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature résistance résistantes
Definition Qualité par laquelle un corps résiste à l’action d’un autre corps. Féminin pluriel de résistant.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set résistance and résistantes apart are highlighted. They share 9 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

10 ch
résistance
11 ch
résistantes

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: résistance is \ʁe.zis.tɑ̃s\ while résistantes is \ʁe.zis.tɑ̃t\. 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 (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 26318, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

résistance is recorded at frequency rank #1,935, classified as anoun, pronounced \ʁe.zis.tɑ̃s\. résistantes is at rank #24,383, tagged as anadj, pronounced \ʁe.zis.tɑ̃t\.

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 26318, this pair ranks #335,769 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of résistance vs résistantes

Shared letters: aeinrsté. Private to "résistance": c. Private to "résistantes": -.

"résistance" · 10 letters · shape CVCVCCVCCV  ·  "résistantes" · 11 letters · shape CVCVCCVCCVC

Frequency comparison

résistance#1,935
résistantes#24,383

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "résistance" and "résistantes" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "résistance" is a noun and "résistantes" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "résistance" or "résistantes"?
"résistance" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,935 in our French list, against #24,383 for "résistantes". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering résistance vs résistantes

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “résistance”; for an adjective, it's “résistantes”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “résistance” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list