Which to use
“tempérer” is a verb and “tempête” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #38,066
- “tempérer” frequency rank
- #3,968
- “tempête” frequency rank
- 42034
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | tempérer | tempête |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Modérer ou réguler de quelque manière que ce soit. | Tourmente atmosphérique, violente agitation de l’air, souvent accompagnée de pluie, de neige, de grêle, d’éclairs, de tonnerre, etc. |
Where the eye mixes tempérer and tempête
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. tempérer runs 8 letters (CVCCVCVC) against tempête's 7 (CVCCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses tempérer with tempête
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: tempérer is \tɑ̃.pe.ʁe\ while tempête is \tɑ̃.pɛt\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 42034, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
tempérer is recorded at frequency rank #38,066, classified as averb, pronounced \tɑ̃.pe.ʁe\. tempête is at rank #3,968, tagged as anoun, pronounced \tɑ̃.pɛt\.
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 42034, this pair ranks #228,696 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of tempérer vs tempête
Shared letters: empt. Private to "tempérer": ré. Private to "tempête": ê.
"tempérer" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC · "tempête" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "tempérer" for "tempête" ever safe?
Frequency check: "tempérer" vs "tempête" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "tempérer" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "tempête" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #228,696 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "tempérer" and "tempête" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "tempérées vs tempérer". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #228,696 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.