chose

\ʃoz\

/\ʃoz\/ noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

The verdict

“chose” is in the everyday core of French, ranked #158 in French word frequency and used as a noun.

#158
frequency rank, French
5
letters
7
tracked misspellings
20
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Objet, idée ou abstraction quelconque, sans pouvoir, vouloir, ou devoir l’identifier ou la nommer. Note d’usage : La signification du mot chose se déduit par la manière dont on l’emploie dans la ph...

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).

chose vs coe
60% similar
chose vs code
60% similar
chose vs côte
40% similar

Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).

Key facts for chose
PropertyValue
Headwordchose
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\ʃoz\
Letters5
Frequency rank#158
Misspellings tracked7
Confusable pairs20
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “chose” sits in French frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). chose lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The French entry for chose is 5 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \ʃoz\. Corpus data places it at rank #158 in overall French word frequency, putting it firmly in the everyday core of the language. Wiktionary records 13 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 7 likely wrong-spelling variants for chose, with forms such as "cchose", "chhose", and "choes". Each of these forms differs from the correct spelling by one small edit: a doubled letter, a dropped silent letter, or a substituted vowel. It also participates in 20 confusable-pair relationships, "coe", "code", "côte", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so its spelling is easiest to reason about phoneme by phoneme, absent a documented history. The correct French form is chose, spelled C-H-O-S-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Objet, idée ou abstraction quelconque, sans pouvoir, vouloir, ou devoir l’identifier ou la nommer. Note d’usage : La signification du mot chose se déduit par la manière dont on l’emploie dans la phrase, où il remplace ce qu’il n’est pas possible (ou pas souhaitable) de nommer. Peut aussi remplacer un ensemble d’objets inanimés (ou d’idées) qu’on devine par le contexte.
  2. 2
    Mot, idée, évènement ou énumération dont on parle.
  3. 3
    Concept, idée, ce qui a été, est, ou sera dit ou fait.
  4. 4
    Événements (voire des forces) qui dépassent l'entendement et que des mots ne sauraient retranscrire.
  5. 5
    Dans des expressions.
  6. 6
    Inanimé par opposition à la personne.
  7. 7
    Ce qui est réel, par opposition au nom ou au mot.
  8. 8
    Personne.
  9. 9
    Bien, possession, propriété.
  10. 10
    Tout ce qui est distinct des personnes et des actions et qui peut être de quelque usage humain.
  11. 11
    Parties génitales masculines.
  12. 12
    Mot-joker employé pour remplacer un mot qu’on se refuse à prononcer ou à écrire.
  13. 13
    Ce qui concerne l’acte sexuel.

Synonyms

machin-choseMachin ChouetteTruc Machin-Chouette

This word in other languages

thing(English)cosa(Español)Ding(Deutsch)coisa(Português)

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: cchose,chhose,choes,chosse,chsoe,cohse,hcose

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of chose - counted as single-character edits (an insertion, a deletion, or a substituted letter). The larger the bar, the easier the typo is to spot; one-edit slips are the ones that sneak past readers.

cchose1chhose1choes2chosse1chsoe2cohse2hcose2
Edit distance from "chose"

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 French corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "chose"?
"chose" is spelled C-H-O-S-E. The IPA pronunciation is \ʃoz\.
What does "chose" mean?
As a noun, "chose" means: Objet, idée ou abstraction quelconque, sans pouvoir, vouloir, ou devoir l’identifier ou la nommer. Note d’usage : La signification du mot chose se déduit par la manière dont on l’emploie dans la ph...
What words are commonly confused with "chose"?
"chose" is commonly confused with "coe", "code", "côte". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "chose"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "chose" is \ʃoz\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "chose" come from?
"chose" is a French word. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for this and other words across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German on PlainSpell.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “chose”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct French spelling is C-H-O-S-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \ʃoz\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “coe” - see the side-by-side comparison. chose vs coe
  • Browse more French words and confusable pairs in the same reference. French words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list