satisfairevssatisfaiteWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: satisfaire is a verb, satisfaite is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“satisfaire” is a verb and “satisfaite” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#4,988
“satisfaire” frequency rank
#13,473
“satisfaite” frequency rank
18461
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature satisfaire satisfaite
Definition Contenter ; donner satisfaction (à). Féminin singulier de satisfait.

Where the spellings diverge

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

10 ch
satisfaire
10 ch
satisfaite

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: satisfaire is \sa.tis.fɛʁ\ while satisfaite is \sa.tis.fɛt\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - r in “satisfaire” becomes t in “satisfaite”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 18461, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

satisfaire is recorded at frequency rank #4,988, classified as averb, pronounced \sa.tis.fɛʁ\. satisfaite is at rank #13,473, tagged as anadj, pronounced \sa.tis.fɛt\.

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 18461, this pair ranks #378,200 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of satisfaire vs satisfaite

Shared letters: aefist. Private to "satisfaire": r. Private to "satisfaite": -.

"satisfaire" · 10 letters · shape CVCVCCVVCV  ·  "satisfaite" · 10 letters · shape CVCVCCVVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • satisfaireastisfaire · saitsfaire · satifsaire · satisafire · satisfaier · satisfairre · satisfarie · satisffaire
  • satisfaiteastisfaite · saitsfaite · satifsaite · satisafite · satisfaiet · satisfaitte · satisfatie · satisffaite

Frequency comparison

satisfaire#4,988
satisfaite#13,473

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "satisfaire" and "satisfaite" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "satisfaire" is a verb and "satisfaite" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "satisfaire" or "satisfaite"?
"satisfaire" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #4,988 in our French list, against #13,473 for "satisfaite". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering satisfaire vs satisfaite

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “satisfaire”; for an adjective, it's “satisfaite”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “satisfaire” 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