Which to use
“classe” is a noun and “close” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #598
- “classe” frequency rank
- #10,842
- “close” frequency rank
- 11440
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | classe | close |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Groupe de personnes et de familles ayant la même position dans la société ; classe sociale. | Féminin singulier de clos. |
Where the eye mixes classe and close
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. classe runs 6 letters (CCVCCV) against close's 5 (CCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses classe with close
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: classe is \klɑs\ while close is \kloz\. 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 11440, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
classe is recorded at frequency rank #598, classified as anoun, pronounced \klɑs\. close is at rank #10,842, tagged as anadj, pronounced \kloz\.
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 11440, this pair ranks #409,132 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of classe vs close
Shared letters: cels. Private to "classe": a. Private to "close": o.
"classe" · 6 letters · shape CCVCCV · "close" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "classe" for "close" ever safe?
Frequency check: "classe" vs "close" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "classe" and "close" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "classe" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "close" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #409,132 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "classe" and "close" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "cese vs close". 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 #409,132 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.