cauxvschaudWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: caux is a noun, chaud is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“caux” is a noun and “chaud” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#38,692
“caux” frequency rank
#1,357
“chaud” frequency rank
40049
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature caux chaud
Definition Mélange de choux, de navets et de pommes que l’on donne aux vaches et aux cochons. De température plus haute que la normale, de température élevée.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set caux and chaud apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
caux
5 ch
chaud

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: caux is \ko\ while chaud is \ʃo\. 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 adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 40049, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

caux is recorded at frequency rank #38,692, classified as anoun, pronounced \ko\. chaud is at rank #1,357, tagged as anadj, pronounced \ʃo\.

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 40049, this pair ranks #243,427 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of caux vs chaud

Shared letters: acu. Private to "caux": x. Private to "chaud": dh.

"caux" · 4 letters · shape CVVC  ·  "chaud" · 5 letters · shape CCVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • cauxacux · cauxx · caxu · ccaux · cuax
  • chaudcahud · cchaud · chadu · chaudd · chhaud · chuad · hcaud

Frequency comparison

caux#38,692
chaud#1,357

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "caux" and "chaud" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "caux" is a noun and "chaud" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "caux" or "chaud"?
"chaud" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,357 in our French list, against #38,692 for "caux". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering caux vs chaud

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “caux”; for an adjective, it's “chaud”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “caux” 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