séancevsséancesWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#1,789
“séance” frequency rank
#4,448
“séances” frequency rank
6237
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature séance séances
Definition Droit de prendre place dans une compagnie. Pluriel de séance.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set séance and séances apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
séance
7 ch
séances

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

This is the hard kind. séance and séances are pronounced identically (\se.ɑ̃s\) and both work as anoun. Neither the ear nor the grammar will rescue you; only the meaning does, so the glosses below are the whole decision. They differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “séance” sits inside “séances”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 6237, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

séance is recorded at frequency rank #1,789, classified as anoun, pronounced \se.ɑ̃s\. séances is at rank #4,448, tagged as anoun, pronounced \se.ɑ̃s\.

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 6237, this pair ranks #426,777 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of séance vs séances

Shared letters: acensé. Private to "séance": -. Private to "séances": -.

"séance" · 6 letters · shape CVVCCV  ·  "séances" · 7 letters · shape CVVCCVC

Frequency comparison

séance#1,789
séances#4,448

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "séance" and "séances" be used interchangeably?
No. They are pronounced the same (\se.ɑ̃s\), which is exactly why they get swapped in writing, but the dictionary meanings above are different, and pronunciation is no guide here.
Which is more common, "séance" or "séances"?
"séance" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,789 in our French list, against #4,448 for "séances". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering séance vs séances

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 “séance” 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