Which to use
“clés” and “clin” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,666
- “clés” frequency rank
- #9,619
- “clin” frequency rank
- 12285
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | clés | clin |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Pluriel de clé. | Clignement. |
Where the eye mixes clés and clin
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: clés vs clin
A purely visual mix-up. clés (\kle\) and clin (\klɛ̃\) 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 12285, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
clés is recorded at frequency rank #2,666, classified as anoun, pronounced \kle\. clin is at rank #9,619, tagged as anoun, pronounced \klɛ̃\.
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 12285, this pair ranks #405,878 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of clés vs clin
Shared letters: cl. Private to "clés": sé. Private to "clin": in.
"clés" · 4 letters · shape CCVC · "clin" · 4 letters · shape CCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- clin ← cclin · ciln · clinn · cllin · clni · lcin
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "clés" for "clin" ever safe?
Which is more common, "clés" or "clin"?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "clés" and "clin" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "clés" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "clin" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #405,878 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "clés" and "clin" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "clin vs coon". 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 #405,878 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.