Which to use
“sem” is a preposition and “ses” is a determiner - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #19,985
- “sem” frequency rank
- #67
- “ses” frequency rank
- 20052
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | sem | ses |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Sans. | Pluriel des déterminants possessifs son et sa. Qui sont à lui ou à elle. Note d’usage : Un seul possesseur et plusieurs objets. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set sem and ses apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
sem and ses form a confusable pair in the French index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by a single letter - m in “sem” becomes s in “ses” - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 20052, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
sem is recorded at frequency rank #19,985, classified as aprep, pronounced \sɐ̃j\. ses is at rank #67, tagged as adet, pronounced \se\.
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 20052, this pair ranks #370,167 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "sem" and "ses" be used interchangeably?
Remembering sem vs ses
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a preposition, it's “sem”; for a determiner, it's “ses”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “sem” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable