Which to use
“un” is an adjective and “uns” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #12
- “un” frequency rank
- #2,255
- “uns” frequency rank
- 2267
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | un | uns |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Marque l’unité, le fait qu’une personne ou une chose est seule, unique en son espèce. | Pluriel de un ; chacun. Ensemble premier, initial, en opposition à autres. |
Same sound, different letters: un vs uns
Muted letters are shared; highlighted letters are the only spelling cue when pronunciation matches. Shared run: 2 letters.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
Say them out loud and nothing separates them: un and uns carry the same recorded pronunciation, \œ̃\. Grammar is what tells them apart: one is anadjective, the other anoun, so most sentences will only accept one of them. They differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “un” sits inside “uns”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 2267, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
un is recorded at frequency rank #12, classified as anadj, pronounced \œ̃\. uns is at rank #2,255, tagged as anoun, pronounced \œ̃\.
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 2267, this pair ranks #436,462 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of un vs uns
Shared letters: nu. Private to "un": -. Private to "uns": s.
"un" · 2 letters · shape VC · "uns" · 3 letters · shape VCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "un" and "uns" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "un" or "uns"?
What to do next
You've compared "un" and "uns". Here's where to go from here.
- Full dictionary entry for "un" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "uns" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #436,462 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "un" and "uns" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Ubu vs uns". Nearby pair
PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.