Which to use
“vices” and “vire” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #16,506
- “vices” frequency rank
- #9,094
- “vire” frequency rank
- 25600
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | vices | vire |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Pluriel de vice. | Étroite plate-forme ou corniche sur les flancs d’une paroi rocheuse, sentier serpentant le long d’une montagne. |
Where the eye mixes vices and vire
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses vices with vire
A purely visual mix-up. vices (\visəz\) and vire (\viʁ\) 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 25600, 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\. vire is at rank #9,094, tagged as anoun, pronounced \viʁ\.
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 25600, this pair ranks #339,927 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of vices vs vire
Shared letters: eiv. Private to "vices": cs. Private to "vire": r.
"vices" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "vire" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "vices" and "vire" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "vices" vs "vire" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "vices" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "vire" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #339,927 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "vices" and "vire" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "vices vs virées". 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 #339,927 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.