vêtu vs vêtue, What's the Difference?

Which to use

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

#13,940
“vêtu” frequency rank: #18,624
“vêtue” frequency rank: 32564
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	vêtu	vêtue
Definition	Enveloppé dans un vêtement.	Féminin singulier de vêtu.

Where the spellings diverge

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

4 ch

vêtu

5 ch

vêtue

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. vêtu (\ve.ty\) and vêtue (\vɛ.ty\) 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 extra letter(s) - “vêtu” sits inside “vêtue”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32564, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

vêtu is recorded at frequency rank #13,940, classified as anadj, pronounced \ve.ty\. vêtue is at rank #18,624, tagged as anadj, pronounced \vɛ.ty\.

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 32564, this pair ranks #296,434 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of vêtu vs vêtue

Shared letters: tuvê. Private to "vêtu": -. Private to "vêtue": e.

"vêtu" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "vêtue" · 5 letters · shape CVCVV

Frequency comparison

vêtu#13,940

vêtue#18,624

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "vêtu" and "vêtue" be used interchangeably?

No. They are said differently (\ve.ty\ versus \vɛ.ty\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.

Which is more common, "vêtu" or "vêtue"?

"vêtu" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #13,940 in our French list, against #18,624 for "vêtue". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering vêtu vs vêtue

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 “vêtu” entry
Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable