Which to use
“système” and “systèmes” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #340
- “système” frequency rank
- #1,891
- “systèmes” frequency rank
- 2231
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | système | systèmes |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Ensemble d’éléments, de concepts reliés, organisés en une structure. | Pluriel de système. |
Same sound, different letters: système vs systèmes
Muted letters are shared; highlighted letters are the only spelling cue when pronunciation matches. Shared run: 7 letters. système runs 7 letters (CVCCVCV) against systèmes's 8 (CVCCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Ear matches; page differs - système and systèmes
This is the hard kind. système and systèmes are pronounced identically (\sis.tɛm\) and both work as anoun. Neither the ear nor the grammar will rescue you; only the meaning does, so the glosses below are the whole decision. They differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “système” sits inside “systèmes”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 2231, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
système is recorded at frequency rank #340, classified as anoun, pronounced \sis.tɛm\. systèmes is at rank #1,891, tagged as anoun, pronounced \sis.tɛm\.
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 2231, this pair ranks #436,527 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of système vs systèmes
Shared letters: emstyè. Private to "système": -. Private to "systèmes": -.
"système" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV · "systèmes" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "système" and "systèmes" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary French text, does "système" or "systèmes" show up more?
What to do next
You've separated the homophone pair "système" / "systèmes". Follow the links when you need the full entry or a neighbour that trips the same ear.
- Full dictionary entry for "système" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "systèmes" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #436,527 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "système" and "systèmes" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "systèmes vs systems". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #436,527 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.