Which to use
“arc” and “aur” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,180
- “arc” frequency rank
- #49,504
- “aur” frequency rank
- 52684
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | arc | aur |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Arme de trait servant à lancer des flèches, formée d’une branche de bois ou d’une verge, soit de métal, soit d’autre matière, courbée avec effort au moyen d’une corde qui s’attache aux deux extrémités. | Or. Élément chimique de numéro atomique 79 et de symbole Au qui fait partie des métaux de transition. |
Where the eye mixes arc and aur
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between arc and aur
A purely visual mix-up. arc (\aʁk\) and aur (\ˈawɾ\) 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 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 52684, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
arc is recorded at frequency rank #3,180, classified as anoun, pronounced \aʁk\. aur is at rank #49,504, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ˈawɾ\.
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 52684, this pair ranks #145,979 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of arc vs aur
Shared letters: ar. Private to "arc": c. Private to "aur": u.
"arc" · 3 letters · shape VCC · "aur" · 3 letters · shape VVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "arc" and "aur" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "arc" vs "aur" - which ranks higher?
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 "arc" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "aur" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #145,979 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "arc" and "aur" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Ahn vs aur". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #145,979 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.