ClarevsclercWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: Clare is a name, clerc is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“Clare” is a name and “clerc” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#30,527
“Clare” frequency rank
#16,093
“clerc” frequency rank
46620
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Clare clerc
Definition Bourgade située dans le district de St Edmundsbury, dans le Suffolk, en Angleterre. Personne qui est entrée dans l’état ecclésiastique en recevant la tonsure.

Where the spellings diverge

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

5 ch
Clare
5 ch
clerc

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: Clare is aname and clercanoun. On the page they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 46620, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Clare is recorded at frequency rank #30,527, classified as aname. clerc is at rank #16,093, tagged as anoun, pronounced \klɛʁ\.

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 46620, this pair ranks #193,490 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of Clare vs clerc

Shared letters: celr. Private to "Clare": a. Private to "clerc": -.

"Clare" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV  ·  "clerc" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Clarecclare · clarre · cllare · clrae · lcare
  • clerccclerc · celrc · clecr · clercc · clerrc · cllerc · clrec · lcerc

Frequency comparison

Clare#30,527
clerc#16,093

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Clare" and "clerc" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Clare" is a name and "clerc" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Clare" or "clerc"?
"clerc" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #16,093 in our French list, against #30,527 for "Clare". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Clare vs clerc

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a name, it's “Clare”; for a noun, it's “clerc”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Clare” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list