Which to use
“clés” and “CSS” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,666
- “clés” frequency rank
- #18,705
- “CSS” frequency rank
- 21371
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | clés | CSS |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Pluriel de clé. | Séquence d’instructions de rendu visuel, auditif ou tactile d’une ressource HTML ou XML. |
Where the eye mixes clés and CSS
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses clés with CSS
A purely visual mix-up. clés (\kle\) and CSS (\se ɛ.s‿ɛs\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 21371, 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\. CSS is at rank #18,705, tagged as anoun, pronounced \se ɛ.s‿ɛs\.
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 21371, this pair ranks #363,525 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of clés vs CSS
Shared letters: cs. Private to "clés": lé. Private to "CSS": -.
"clés" · 4 letters · shape CCVC · "CSS" · 3 letters · shape CCC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "clés" for "CSS" ever safe?
Which is more common, "clés" or "CSS"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "clés" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "CSS" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #363,525 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "clés" and "CSS" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "CCE vs CSS". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #363,525 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.