scènesvssexesWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#3,362
“scènes” frequency rank
#8,619
“sexes” frequency rank
11981
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature scènes sexes
Definition Pluriel de scène. Pluriel de sexe.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set scènes and sexes apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
scènes
5 ch
sexes

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. scènes (\sɛn\) and sexes (\sɛks\) 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 11981, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

scènes is recorded at frequency rank #3,362, classified as anoun, pronounced \sɛn\. sexes is at rank #8,619, tagged as anoun, pronounced \sɛks\.

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 11981, this pair ranks #407,036 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of scènes vs sexes

Shared letters: es. Private to "scènes": cnè. Private to "sexes": x.

"scènes" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC  ·  "sexes" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • sexesesxes · seexs · sexess · sexse · sexxes · ssexes · sxees

Frequency comparison

scènes#3,362
sexes#8,619

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "scènes" and "sexes" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\sɛn\ versus \sɛks\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "scènes" or "sexes"?
"scènes" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,362 in our French list, against #8,619 for "sexes". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering scènes vs sexes

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 “scènes” 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