cachésvsclichésWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“cachés” and “clichés” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#8,667
“cachés” frequency rank
#6,477
“clichés” frequency rank
15144
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature cachés clichés
Definition Masculin pluriel de caché. Masculin pluriel de cliché.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set cachés and clichés apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
cachés
7 ch
clichés

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. cachés (\ka.ʃe\) and clichés (\kli.ʃe\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 15144, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

cachés is recorded at frequency rank #8,667, classified as anadj, pronounced \ka.ʃe\. clichés is at rank #6,477, tagged as anadj, pronounced \kli.ʃe\.

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 15144, this pair ranks #393,670 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of cachés vs clichés

Shared letters: chsé. Private to "cachés": a. Private to "clichés": il.

"cachés" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "clichés" · 7 letters · shape CCVCCVC

Frequency comparison

cachés#8,667
clichés#6,477

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "cachés" and "clichés" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\ka.ʃe\ versus \kli.ʃe\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "cachés" or "clichés"?
"clichés" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,477 in our French list, against #8,667 for "cachés". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering cachés vs clichés

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “cachés” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list