vi vs vis, What's the Difference?

Which to use

“vi” is a name and “vis” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#3,812
“vi” frequency rank: #993
“vis” frequency rank: 4805
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	vi	vis
Definition	Éditeur de texte minimaliste créé en 1976 par Bill Joy, n’utilisant que le clavier, et modal : l’effet de la pression sur une touche du clavier dépend du mode dans lequel on se trouve (mode insertion ou mode commande).	Pièce mécanique formée d’un corps qui comporte un filet de forme hélicoïdale et une tête où une empreinte permet d’appliquer un couple ; il en résulte un double mouvement de rotation et de translation. En mécanique, elles sont souvent employées avec des écrous pour former des boulons.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set vi and vis apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

2 ch

3 ch

vis

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

vi and vis form a confusable pair in the French index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “vi” sits inside “vis” - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 4805, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

vi is recorded at frequency rank #3,812, classified as aname, pronounced \vi.aj\. vis is at rank #993, tagged as anoun, pronounced \vis\.

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 4805, this pair ranks #430,644 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Frequency comparison

vi#3,812

vis#993

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "vi" and "vis" be used interchangeably?

No, "vi" and "vis" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering vi vs vis

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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