Which to use
“cliché” and “clique” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #22,616
- “cliché” frequency rank
- #23,784
- “clique” frequency rank
- 46400
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cliché | clique |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Something, most often a phrase or expression, that is overused or used outside its original context, so that its original impact and meaning are lost. A trite saying; a platitude. | A small, exclusive group of individuals, usually according to lifestyle or social status; a cabal. |
Where the eye mixes cliché and clique
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. cliché (CCVCCV) and clique (CCVCVV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses cliché with clique
A purely visual mix-up. cliché (/ˈkliː.ʃeɪ/) and clique (/kliːk/) 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 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 46400, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cliché is recorded at frequency rank #22,616, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈkliː.ʃeɪ/. clique is at rank #23,784, tagged as anoun, pronounced /kliːk/.
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 46400, this pair ranks #212,106 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of cliché vs clique
Shared letters: cil. Private to "cliché": hé. Private to "clique": equ.
"cliché" · 6 letters · shape CCVCCV · "clique" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVV
Known mistypes of this pair
- clique ← cclique · cilque · cliqeu · cliqque · cliuqe · cllique · clqiue · lcique
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "cliché" and "clique" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "cliché" or "clique"?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "cliché" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "clique" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #212,106 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "cliché" and "clique" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "cinque vs clique". 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 #212,106 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.