valservsvolerWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#41,583
“valser” frequency rank
#3,115
“voler” frequency rank
44698
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature valser voler
Definition Danser la valse, une valse. Se maintenir dans les airs en battant des ailes.

Where the spellings diverge

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

6 ch
valser
5 ch
voler

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. valser (\val.se\) and voler (\vɔ.le\) 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 44698, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

valser is recorded at frequency rank #41,583, classified as averb, pronounced \val.se\. voler is at rank #3,115, tagged as averb, pronounced \vɔ.le\.

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 44698, this pair ranks #208,507 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of valser vs voler

Shared letters: elrv. Private to "valser": as. Private to "voler": o.

"valser" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "voler" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • valseravlser · valesr · vallser · valserr · valsre · valsser · vasler · vlaser
  • volerovler · vloer · voelr · volerr · voller · volre · vvoler

Frequency comparison

valser#41,583
voler#3,115

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "valser" and "voler" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\val.se\ versus \vɔ.le\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "valser" or "voler"?
"voler" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,115 in our French list, against #41,583 for "valser". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering valser vs voler

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 “valser” 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