samplesvssaulesTell them apart

Which to use

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

#47,034
“samples” frequency rank
#35,716
“saules” frequency rank
82750
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature samples saules
Definition Pluriel de sample. Pluriel de saule.

Where the eye mixes samples and saules

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. samples runs 7 letters (CVCCCVC) against saules's 6 (CVVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

7 ch
samples
6 ch
saules

Visual trap between samples and saules

A purely visual mix-up. samples (\sɑ̃pl\) and saules (\sol\) 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 82750, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

samples is recorded at frequency rank #47,034, classified as anoun, pronounced \sɑ̃pl\. saules is at rank #35,716, tagged as anoun, pronounced \sol\.

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 82750, this pair ranks #16,102 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of samples vs saules

Shared letters: aels. Private to "samples": mp. Private to "saules": u.

"samples" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC  ·  "saules" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • samples ← asmples · samlpes · sammples · sampels · sampless · samplles · samplse · sampples
  • saules ← asules · salues · sauels · sauless · saulles · saulse · ssaules · suales

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "samples" for "saules" ever safe?
No. They are said differently (\sɑ̃pl\ versus \sol\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "samples" or "saules"?
"saules" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #35,716 in our French list, against #47,034 for "samples". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "samples" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "saules" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #16,102 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "samples" and "saules" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "samples vs simplet". 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 #16,102 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