Which to use
“caux” is a noun and “creux” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #38,692
- “caux” frequency rank
- #6,945
- “creux” frequency rank
- 45637
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | caux | creux |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Mélange de choux, de navets et de pommes que l’on donne aux vaches et aux cochons. | Qui présente une cavité, un trou intérieur. |
Where the eye mixes caux and creux
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. caux runs 4 letters (CVVC) against creux's 5 (CCVVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses caux with creux
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: caux is \ko\ while creux is \kʁø\. 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 45637, 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\. creux is at rank #6,945, tagged as anadj, pronounced \kʁø\.
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 45637, this pair ranks #201,228 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of caux vs creux
Shared letters: cux. Private to "caux": a. Private to "creux": er.
"caux" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "creux" · 5 letters · shape CCVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "caux" and "creux" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "caux" vs "creux" - 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 "caux" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "creux" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #201,228 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "caux" and "creux" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "casus vs caux". 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 #201,228 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.