Which to use
“cartons” and “cotons” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #8,967
- “cartons” frequency rank
- #46,680
- “cotons” frequency rank
- 55647
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cartons | cotons |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Pluriel de carton. | Pluriel de coton. |
Where the eye mixes cartons and cotons
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses cartons with cotons
A purely visual mix-up. cartons (\kaʁ.tɔ̃\) and cotons (\kɔ.tɔ̃\) 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 55647, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cartons is recorded at frequency rank #8,967, classified as anoun, pronounced \kaʁ.tɔ̃\. cotons is at rank #46,680, tagged as anoun, pronounced \kɔ.tɔ̃\.
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 55647, this pair ranks #126,129 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of cartons vs cotons
Shared letters: cnost. Private to "cartons": ar. Private to "cotons": -.
"cartons" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC · "cotons" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "cartons" for "cotons" ever safe?
Frequency check: "cartons" vs "cotons" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "cartons" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "cotons" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #126,129 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "cartons" and "cotons" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "coon vs cotons". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #126,129 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.