couture

\ku.tyʁ\

/\ku.tyʁ\/ noun

The verdict

“couture” is a regularly-used French word, ranked #8,088 in French word frequency and used as a noun.

#8,088
frequency rank, French
7
letters
9
tracked misspellings
19
confusable pairs

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - Action, art de coudre.

Visual similarity to commonly confused words

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

couture vs couvre
71% similar
couture vs culture
71% similar
couture vs couturier
78% similar

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

Key facts for couture
PropertyValue
Headwordcouture
LanguageFrench
Part of speechNoun
IPA\ku.tyʁ\
Letters7
Frequency rank#8,088
Misspellings tracked9
Confusable pairs19
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “couture” 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). couture 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 couture is 7 letters long, classified as a noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as \ku.tyʁ\. Corpus data places it at rank #8,088 in overall French word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 6 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

Our generated misspelling index lists 9 likely wrong-spelling variants for couture, with forms such as "ccouture", "cotuure", and "coutrue". Every one of these variants traces to a single-character edit -- an added or dropped letter, a swapped consonant, or a vowel swap -- the kind of slip a spell-checker is built to catch. It also participates in 19 confusable-pair relationships, "couvre", "culture", "couturier", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.

Wiktionary doesn't record an etymology for this headword, so its spelling is easiest to reason about phoneme by phoneme, absent a documented history. The correct French form is couture, spelled C-O-U-T-U-R-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    Action, art de coudre.
  2. 2
    Assemblage de deux pièces d’étoffe, de cuir, etc., qui se fait au moyen de l’aiguille, de l’alène, avec du fil de la soie, etc.
  3. 3
    Ensemble des personnes qui font métier de coudre.
  4. 4
    Fine bande contrastante, limitée à un trait continu ajouté autour d’une pièce (ou d’un symbole d’armoiries tout entier) et dont l’émail (métal, fourrure ou de sable) uniforme, plan ou en relief, permet de poser la pièce par dessus d’autres (en les recouvrant partiellement) et de la mettre en évidence, tout en évitant les juxtapositions jugées disgracieuses ou non conformes aux règles héraldiques (métal contre métal, fourrure contre fourrure, voire aussi sable contre sable). On parle parfois aussi (mais improprement) de filet, qui désigne plutôt le trait de séparation entre deux pièces juxtaposées, dont aucune ne recouvre partiellement l’autre. Ne pas confondre avec le listel, plus épais et qui entoure le symbole héraldique tout entier et en fait partie.
  5. 5
    Cicatrice qui reste d’une plaie, soit qu’elle ait été recousue ou non, et même des grandes marques que laisse la petite vérole sur le visage.
  6. 6
    Intervalle qui se trouve entre deux bordages et que les calfats remplissent d’étoupe. Il se dit également de l’étoupe même.

This word in other languages

Common misspellings

Also misspelled as: ccouture,cotuure,coutrue,coutture,coutuer,couturre,couutre,cuoture,ocuture

Misspelling Pattern Breakdown

How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of couture - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.

ccouture1cotuure2coutrue2coutture1coutuer2couturre1couutre2cuoture2
Edit distance from "couture"

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 "couture"?
"couture" is spelled C-O-U-T-U-R-E. The IPA pronunciation is \ku.tyʁ\.
What does "couture" mean?
As a noun, "couture" means: Action, art de coudre.
What words are commonly confused with "couture"?
"couture" is commonly confused with "couvre", "culture", "couturier". These words look or sound similar but have different meanings. PlainSpell provides detailed comparisons for each pair.
How do you pronounce "couture"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "couture" is \ku.tyʁ\. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "couture" come from?
"couture" is a French word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
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 “couture”

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

  • The one correct French spelling is C-O-U-T-U-R-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as \ku.tyʁ\ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Don't mix it up with “couvre” - see the side-by-side comparison. couture vs couvre
  • 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