Which to use
“sauvons” and “savions” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #28,739
- “sauvons” frequency rank
- #20,566
- “savions” frequency rank
- 49305
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | sauvons | savions |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Première personne du pluriel du présent de l’indicatif de sauver. | Première personne du pluriel de l’imparfait de savoir. |
Where the eye mixes sauvons and savions
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. sauvons (CVVCVCC) and savions (CVCVVCC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Look-alike desk: sauvons vs savions
A purely visual mix-up. sauvons (\so.vɔ̃\) and savions (\sa.vjɔ̃\) 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 49305, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
sauvons is recorded at frequency rank #28,739, classified as averb, pronounced \so.vɔ̃\. savions is at rank #20,566, tagged as averb, pronounced \sa.vjɔ̃\.
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 49305, this pair ranks #171,773 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of sauvons vs savions
Shared letters: anosv. Private to "sauvons": u. Private to "savions": i.
"sauvons" · 7 letters · shape CVVCVCC · "savions" · 7 letters · shape CVCVVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "sauvons" for "savions" ever safe?
In ordinary French text, does "sauvons" or "savions" show up more?
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 "sauvons" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "savions" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #171,773 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "sauvons" and "savions" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "sachons vs sauvons". 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 #171,773 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.