Which to use
“tin” and “tma” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #17,292
- “tin” frequency rank
- #48,830
- “tma” frequency rank
- 66122
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | tin | tma |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Cale de bois qui supporte la quille d’un navire en construction ou en cale sèche. | Obscurité, ténèbres. |
Where the eye mixes tin and tma
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Look-alike desk: tin vs tma
A purely visual mix-up. tin (\tɛ̃\) and tma (\tma\) 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 66122, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
tin is recorded at frequency rank #17,292, classified as anoun, pronounced \tɛ̃\. tma is at rank #48,830, tagged as anoun, pronounced \tma\.
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 66122, this pair ranks #69,200 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of tin vs tma
Shared letters: t. Private to "tin": in. Private to "tma": am.
"tin" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "tma" · 3 letters · shape CCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "tin" for "tma" ever safe?
Frequency check: "tin" vs "tma" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "tin" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "tma" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #69,200 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "tin" and "tma" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "tif vs tma". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #69,200 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.