vérifier vs verrier, What's the Difference?

Which to use

“vérifier” is a verb and “verrier” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#2,156
“vérifier” frequency rank: #34,356
“verrier” frequency rank: 36512
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	vérifier	verrier
Definition	Examiner, rechercher si une chose est vraie, si elle est telle qu’elle doit être ou qu’on l’a déclarée.	Relatif au verre ou à sa fabrication.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set vérifier and verrier apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch

vérifier

7 ch

verrier

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: vérifier is \ve.ʁi.fje\ while verrier is \vɛ.ʁje\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 36512, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

vérifier is recorded at frequency rank #2,156, classified as averb, pronounced \ve.ʁi.fje\. verrier is at rank #34,356, tagged as anadj, pronounced \vɛ.ʁje\.

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 36512, this pair ranks #269,079 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of vérifier vs verrier

Shared letters: eirv. Private to "vérifier": fé. Private to "verrier": -.

"vérifier" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCVVC · "verrier" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

verrier ← evrrier · verier · verirer · verreir · verrierr · verrire · vrerier · vverrier

Frequency comparison

vérifier#2,156

verrier#34,356

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "vérifier" and "verrier" be used interchangeably?

No - they are not even the same part of speech. "vérifier" is a verb and "verrier" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.

Which is more common, "vérifier" or "verrier"?

"vérifier" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,156 in our French list, against #34,356 for "verrier". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering vérifier vs verrier

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “vérifier”; for an adjective, it's “verrier”.
See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “vérifier” entry
Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable