Which to use
“vase” and “ves” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #10,099
- “vase” frequency rank
- #42,676
- “ves” frequency rank
- 52775
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | vase | ves |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Bourbe, limon qui se dépose au fond de la mer, des fleuves, des étangs, etc. | Veuves. |
Where the eye mixes vase and ves
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. vase runs 4 letters (CVCV) against ves's 3 (CVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between vase and ves
A purely visual mix-up. vase (\vɑz\) and ves (\vœv\) 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 52775, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
vase is recorded at frequency rank #10,099, classified as anoun, pronounced \vɑz\. ves is at rank #42,676, tagged as anoun, pronounced \vœv\.
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 52775, this pair ranks #145,387 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of vase vs ves
Shared letters: esv. Private to "vase": a. Private to "ves": -.
"vase" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "ves" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- vase ← avse · vaes · vasse · vsae · vvase
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "vase" for "ves" ever safe?
In ordinary French text, does "vase" or "ves" show up more?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "vase" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ves" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #145,387 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "vase" and "ves" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ves vs viv". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #145,387 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.