Which to use
“Clan” and “clou” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #9,695
- “Clan” frequency rank
- #39,272
- “clou” frequency rank
- 48967
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Clan | clou |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | (schottischer/irischer) Stammes-/Volksverband | Nagel |
Where the eye mixes Clan and clou
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: Clan vs clou
A purely visual mix-up. Clan ([klaːn]) and clou ([klu]) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 48967, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Clan is recorded at frequency rank #9,695, classified as anoun, pronounced [klaːn]. clou is at rank #39,272, tagged as anoun, pronounced [klu].
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 48967, this pair ranks #1,228,927 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Clan vs clou
Shared letters: cl. Private to "Clan": an. Private to "clou": ou.
"Clan" · 4 letters · shape CCVC · "clou" · 4 letters · shape CCVV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "Clan" and "clou" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary German text, does "Clan" or "clou" show up more?
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 "Clan" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "clou" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #1,228,927 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Clan" and "clou" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "clock vs clou". 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 #1,228,927 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.