sectionsvssélectionsWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

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

#6,756
“sections” frequency rank
#10,247
“sélections” frequency rank
17003
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature sections sélections
Definition Pluriel de section. Pluriel de sélection.

Where the eye mixes sections and sélections

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence.

8 ch
sections
10 ch
sélections

Why the eye confuses sections with sélections

A purely visual mix-up. sections (\sɛk.sjɔ̃\) and sélections (\se.lɛk.sjɔ̃\) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 17003, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

sections is recorded at frequency rank #6,756, classified as anoun, pronounced \sɛk.sjɔ̃\. sélections is at rank #10,247, tagged as anoun, pronounced \se.lɛk.sjɔ̃\.

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 17003, this pair ranks #385,262 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of sections vs sélections

Shared letters: ceinost. Private to "sections": -. Private to "sélections": .

"sections" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVVCC  ·  "sélections" · 10 letters · shape CVCVCCVVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • sectionsesctions · scetions · secctions · secitons · sectinos · sectionns · sectionss · sectiosn

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "sections" and "sélections" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently (\sɛk.sjɔ̃\ versus \se.lɛk.sjɔ̃\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "sections" vs "sélections" - which ranks higher?
"sections" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,756 in our French list, against #10,247 for "sélections". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

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

  • Full dictionary entry for "sections" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "sélections" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #385,262 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "sections" and "sélections" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "sélections vs sélectives". 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 #385,262 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