Which to use
“tend” and “told” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #5,709
- “tend” frequency rank
- #45,349
- “told” frequency rank
- 51058
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | tend | told |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Troisième personne du singulier de l’indicatif présent de tendre. | Prétérit de tell. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set tend and told apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
A purely visual mix-up. tend (\tɑ̃\) and told (\təʊld\) 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 51058, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
tend is recorded at frequency rank #5,709, classified as averb, pronounced \tɑ̃\. told is at rank #45,349, tagged as averb, pronounced \təʊld\.
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 51058, this pair ranks #157,910 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of tend vs told
Shared letters: dt. Private to "tend": en. Private to "told": lo.
"tend" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "told" · 4 letters · shape CVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "tend" and "told" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "tend" or "told"?
Remembering tend vs told
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 “tend” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable