Which to use
“sens” is a noun and “sensés” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #260
- “sens” frequency rank
- #31,255
- “sensés” frequency rank
- 31515
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | sens | sensés |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Signification, ce que quelque chose veut dire. | Masculin pluriel de sensé. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set sens and sensés apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: sens is \sɑ̃s\ while sensés is \sɑ̃.se\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “sens” sits inside “sensés”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 31515, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
sens is recorded at frequency rank #260, classified as anoun, pronounced \sɑ̃s\. sensés is at rank #31,255, tagged as anadj, pronounced \sɑ̃.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 31515, this pair ranks #303,334 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of sens vs sensés
Shared letters: ens. Private to "sens": -. Private to "sensés": é.
"sens" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "sensés" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- sens ← esns · senns · senss · sesn · snes · ssens
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "sens" and "sensés" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "sens" or "sensés"?
Remembering sens vs sensés
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “sens”; for an adjective, it's “sensés”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “sens” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable