Which to use
“cec” is an adjective and “clef” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #46,636
- “cec” frequency rank
- #6,063
- “clef” frequency rank
- 52699
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cec | clef |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Aveugle. | Variante orthographique de clé. |
Where the eye mixes cec and clef
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses cec with clef
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: cec is \ˈsek\ while clef is \kle\. 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 (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 52699, 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\. clef is at rank #6,063, 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 52699, this pair ranks #145,885 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of cec vs clef
Shared letters: ce. Private to "cec": -. Private to "clef": fl.
"cec" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "clef" · 4 letters · shape CCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- clef ← cclef · celf · cleff · clfe · cllef · lcef
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "cec" for "clef" ever safe?
Which is more common, "cec" or "clef"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "cec" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "clef" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #145,885 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "cec" and "clef" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "CCE vs cec". 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 #145,885 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.