Which to use
“sigma” and “signal” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #31,736
- “sigma” frequency rank
- #3,801
- “signal” frequency rank
- 35537
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | sigma | signal |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | σ, ς, Σ, dix-huitième lettre et treizième consonne de l’alphabet grec. | Signe servant d’avertissement. |
Where the eye mixes sigma and signal
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. sigma runs 5 letters (CVCCV) against signal's 6 (CVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: sigma vs signal
A purely visual mix-up. sigma (\siɡ.ma\) and signal (\si.ɲal\) 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 35537, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
sigma is recorded at frequency rank #31,736, classified as anoun, pronounced \siɡ.ma\. signal is at rank #3,801, tagged as anoun, pronounced \si.ɲal\.
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 35537, this pair ranks #276,018 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of sigma vs signal
Shared letters: agis. Private to "sigma": m. Private to "signal": ln.
"sigma" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "signal" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "sigma" and "signal" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "sigma" vs "signal" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "sigma" and "signal" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "sigma" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "signal" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #276,018 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "sigma" and "signal" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "salma vs sigma". 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 #276,018 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.