Which to use
“clé” and “cou” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,987
- “clé” frequency rank
- #3,063
- “cou” frequency rank
- 5050
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | clé | cou |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 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. | Partie du corps qui joint la tête aux épaules. |
Where the eye mixes clé and cou
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence. clé (CCV) and cou (CVV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses clé with cou
A purely visual mix-up. clé (\kle\) and cou (\ku\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 5050, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
clé is recorded at frequency rank #1,987, classified as anoun, pronounced \kle\. cou is at rank #3,063, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ku\.
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 5050, this pair ranks #430,038 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of clé vs cou
Shared letters: c. Private to "clé": lé. Private to "cou": ou.
"clé" · 3 letters · shape CCV · "cou" · 3 letters · shape CVV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "clé" for "cou" ever safe?
Frequency check: "clé" vs "cou" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "clé" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "cou" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #430,038 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "clé" and "cou" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "cou vs coupa". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #430,038 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.