Which to use
“aïe” is an intj and “aux” is an article - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #15,571
- “aïe” frequency rank
- #58
- “aux” frequency rank
- 15629
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | aïe | aux |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Cri exprimant la douleur. | Contraction obligatoire de la préposition à et de l'article défini les. |
Where the eye mixes aïe and aux
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence. aïe (VCV) and aux (VVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Look-alike desk: aïe vs aux
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: aïe is \aj\ while aux is \o\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (intj vs article), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 15629, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
aïe is recorded at frequency rank #15,571, classified as anintj, pronounced \aj\. aux is at rank #58, tagged as anarticle, pronounced \o\.
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 15629, this pair ranks #391,537 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of aïe vs aux
Shared letters: a. Private to "aïe": eï. Private to "aux": ux.
"aïe" · 3 letters · shape VCV · "aux" · 3 letters · shape VVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "aïe" and "aux" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "aïe" or "aux"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "aïe" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "aux" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #391,537 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "aïe" and "aux" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "aïe vs aves". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #391,537 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.