Which to use
“non” is a noun and “nous” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #9,501
- “non” frequency rank
- #38,848
- “nous” frequency rank
- 48349
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | non | nous |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Dícese del número no divisible por dos. | Forma del masculino plural de nou. |
Where the eye mixes non and nous
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses non with nous
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: non is [ˈnõn] while nous is [ˈnows]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 48349, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
non is recorded at frequency rank #9,501, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈnõn]. nous is at rank #38,848, tagged as anadj, pronounced [ˈnows].
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 48349, this pair ranks #114,997 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of non vs nous
Shared letters: no. Private to "non": -. Private to "nous": su.
"non" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "nous" · 4 letters · shape CVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- nous ← nnous · nosu · nouss · onus
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "non" and "nous" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary Spanish text, does "non" or "nous" show up more?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "non" and "nous" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "non" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "nous" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #114,997 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "non" and "nous" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "nous vs nox". 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 #114,997 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.