Which to use
“sis” and “spi” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #19,157
- “sis” frequency rank
- #49,369
- “spi” frequency rank
- 68526
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | sis | spi |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Qui est situé. | Spirituel (au sens religieux). |
Where the eye mixes sis and spi
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. sis (CVC) and spi (CCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between sis and spi
A purely visual mix-up. sis (\si\) and spi (\spi\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 68526, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
sis is recorded at frequency rank #19,157, classified as anadj, pronounced \si\. spi is at rank #49,369, tagged as anadj, pronounced \spi\.
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 68526, this pair ranks #58,814 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of sis vs spi
Shared letters: is. Private to "sis": -. Private to "spi": p.
"sis" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "spi" · 3 letters · shape CCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "sis" and "spi" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary French text, does "sis" or "spi" show up more?
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 "sis" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "spi" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #58,814 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "sis" and "spi" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "spi vs suu". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #58,814 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.