tempesvstomesWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“tempes” and “tomes” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#46,482
“tempes” frequency rank
#11,493
“tomes” frequency rank
57975
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature tempes tomes
Definition Pluriel de tempe. Pluriel de tome.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set tempes and tomes apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
tempes
5 ch
tomes

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. tempes (\tɑ̃p\) and tomes (\tɔm\) 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 57975, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

tempes is recorded at frequency rank #46,482, classified as anoun, pronounced \tɑ̃p\. tomes is at rank #11,493, tagged as anoun, pronounced \tɔm\.

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 57975, this pair ranks #111,806 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of tempes vs tomes

Shared letters: emst. Private to "tempes": p. Private to "tomes": o.

"tempes" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "tomes" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • tempesetmpes · temeps · temmpes · tempess · temppes · tempse · tepmes · tmepes
  • tomesotmes · tmoes · toems · tomess · tommes · tomse · ttomes

Frequency comparison

tempes#46,482
tomes#11,493

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "tempes" and "tomes" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\tɑ̃p\ versus \tɔm\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "tempes" or "tomes"?
"tomes" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #11,493 in our French list, against #46,482 for "tempes". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering tempes vs tomes

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “tempes” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list