vicesvsvierConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#16,506
“vices” frequency rank
#41,592
“vier” frequency rank
58098
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature vices vier
Definition Pluriel de vice. Pénis.

Where the eye mixes vices and vier

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. vices runs 5 letters (CVCVC) against vier's 4 (CVVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

5 ch
vices
4 ch
vier

Visual trap between vices and vier

A purely visual mix-up. vices (\visəz\) and vier (\vje\) 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 58098, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

vices is recorded at frequency rank #16,506, classified as anoun, pronounced \visəz\. vier is at rank #41,592, tagged as anoun, pronounced \vje\.

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 58098, this pair ranks #111,043 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of vices vs vier

Shared letters: eiv. Private to "vices": cs. Private to "vier": r.

"vices" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "vier" · 4 letters · shape CVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • vices ← ivces · vcies · vicces · vicess · vicse · viecs · vvices
  • vier ← veir · vvier

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "vices" and "vier" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\visəz\ versus \vje\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "vices" vs "vier" - which ranks higher?
"vices" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #16,506 in our French list, against #41,592 for "vier". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Useful next steps

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "vices" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "vier" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #111,043 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "vices" and "vier" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "vier 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 #111,043 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list