romprevsrompusWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#7,494
“rompre” frequency rank
#34,729
“rompus” frequency rank
42223
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature rompre rompus
Definition Séparer un solide en deux parties sans se servir d’instrument tranchant ; briser ; mettre en pièces. Masculin pluriel du participe passé de rompre.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set rompre and rompus apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
rompre
6 ch
rompus

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. rompre (\ʁɔ̃pʁ\) and rompus (\ʁɔ̃.py\) 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 42223, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

rompre is recorded at frequency rank #7,494, classified as averb, pronounced \ʁɔ̃pʁ\. rompus is at rank #34,729, tagged as averb, pronounced \ʁɔ̃.py\.

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 42223, this pair ranks #227,251 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of rompre vs rompus

Shared letters: mopr. Private to "rompre": e. Private to "rompus": su.

"rompre" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV  ·  "rompus" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • rompreormpre · rmopre · rommpre · romper · romppre · romprre · romrpe · ropmre
  • rompusormpus · rmopus · rommpus · romppus · rompsu · rompuss · romups · ropmus

Frequency comparison

rompre#7,494
rompus#34,729

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "rompre" and "rompus" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\ʁɔ̃pʁ\ versus \ʁɔ̃.py\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "rompre" or "rompus"?
"rompre" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #7,494 in our French list, against #34,729 for "rompus". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering rompre vs rompus

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “rompre” 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