Which to use
“cec” is an adjective and “clé” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #46,636
- “cec” frequency rank
- #1,987
- “clé” frequency rank
- 48623
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cec | clé |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Aveugle. | Instrument de métal que l’on introduit dans une serrure pour ouvrir ou fermer un accès. Ancienne clé à panneton que l'on place et fait tourner dans la serrure d'une porte, d'un coffre, etc. |
Where the eye mixes cec and clé
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Visual trap between cec and clé
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: cec is \ˈsek\ while clé is \kle\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 48623, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cec is recorded at frequency rank #46,636, classified as anadj, pronounced \ˈsek\. clé is at rank #1,987, tagged as anoun, pronounced \kle\.
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 48623, this pair ranks #177,384 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of cec vs clé
Shared letters: c. Private to "cec": e. Private to "clé": lé.
"cec" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "clé" · 3 letters · shape CCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "cec" for "clé" ever safe?
In ordinary French text, does "cec" or "clé" show up more?
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 "cec" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "clé" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #177,384 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "cec" and "clé" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "CCE vs cec". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #177,384 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.