Which to use
“chère” is a noun and “chez” is a preposition - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,764
- “chère” frequency rank
- #129
- “chez” frequency rank
- 2893
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | chère | chez |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Personne considérée comme chère, qui est tenu avec une affectueuse haute estime ou, par ironie, à qui est adressée une forme de dédain. | Dans la maison de, au logis de ; associé au lieu de résidence ou d'activité d'une personne. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set chère and chez apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: chère is \ʃɛʁ\ while chez is \ʃe\. 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 preposition), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 2893, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
chère is recorded at frequency rank #2,764, classified as anoun, pronounced \ʃɛʁ\. chez is at rank #129, tagged as aprep, pronounced \ʃe\.
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 2893, this pair ranks #435,269 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of chère vs chez
Shared letters: ceh. Private to "chère": rè. Private to "chez": z.
"chère" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV · "chez" · 4 letters · shape CCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- chez ← cchez · cehz · chezz · chhez · chze · hcez
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "chère" and "chez" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "chère" or "chez"?
Remembering chère vs chez
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “chère”; for a preposition, it's “chez”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “chère” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable