Which to use
“ridicule” is an adjective and “ridicules” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,736
- “ridicule” frequency rank
- #12,469
- “ridicules” frequency rank
- 15205
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ridicule | ridicules |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Qui est digne de risée ou de moquerie. | Pluriel de ridicule. |
Same sound, different letters: ridicule vs ridicules
Muted letters are shared; highlighted letters are the only spelling cue when pronunciation matches. Shared run: 8 letters. ridicule runs 8 letters (CVCVCVCV) against ridicules's 9 (CVCVCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Same sound, different spelling - ridicule / ridicules
Say them out loud and nothing separates them: ridicule and ridicules carry the same recorded pronunciation, \ʁi.di.kyl\. Grammar is what tells them apart: one is anadjective, the other anoun, so most sentences will only accept one of them. They differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “ridicule” sits inside “ridicules”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 15205, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ridicule is recorded at frequency rank #2,736, classified as anadj, pronounced \ʁi.di.kyl\. ridicules is at rank #12,469, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ʁi.di.kyl\.
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 15205, this pair ranks #393,378 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of ridicule vs ridicules
Shared letters: cdeilru. Private to "ridicule": -. Private to "ridicules": s.
"ridicule" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCVCV · "ridicules" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "ridicule" and "ridicules" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "ridicule" or "ridicules"?
What to do next
Sound matches; spelling doesn't. Use the exits below to lock the right form or check a cousin pair.
- Full dictionary entry for "ridicule" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ridicules" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #393,378 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ridicule" and "ridicules" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ridicules vs ridiculisé". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #393,378 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.