Which to use
“cai” is a noun and “ci” is an adverb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #46,045
- “cai” frequency rank
- #264
- “ci” frequency rank
- 46309
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cai | ci |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Bien, affaire, objet, chose, fortune. | ou (Utilisé uniquement dans les compositions, pas utilisé isolément) Ici. |
Where the eye mixes cai and ci
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. cai runs 3 letters (CVV) against ci's 2 (CV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: cai vs ci
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: cai is \kaj\ while ci is \si\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adverb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 46309, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cai is recorded at frequency rank #46,045, classified as anoun, pronounced \kaj\. ci is at rank #264, tagged as anadv, pronounced \si\.
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 46309, this pair ranks #195,959 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of cai vs ci
Shared letters: ci. Private to "cai": a. Private to "ci": -.
"cai" · 3 letters · shape CVV · "ci" · 2 letters · shape CV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "cai" for "ci" ever safe?
Frequency check: "cai" vs "ci" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "cai" and "ci" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "cai" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ci" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #195,959 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "cai" and "ci" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "cai vs CCE". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #195,959 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.