Which to use
“cocu” is an adjective and “coucou” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #25,931
- “cocu” frequency rank
- #5,440
- “coucou” frequency rank
- 31371
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cocu | coucou |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Dupé, trompé, victime d’infidélité conjugale. | Nom normalisé de 11 genres assez hétérogènes comprenant 56 espèces d'oiseaux de la famille des cuculidés habitant l'Ancien Monde, essentiellement caractérisées par leur parasitisme de couvée, habitude par laquelle elles confient la couvaison et l'élevage des oisillons à d'autres espèces d'oiseaux le plus souvent plus petites qu'elles; l'espèce-type de ce groupe d'oiseaux est le coucou gris (Cuculus canorus) dont le cri a donné son nom au genre. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set cocu and coucou apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: cocu is \kɔ.ky\ while coucou is \ku.ku\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 31371, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cocu is recorded at frequency rank #25,931, classified as anadj, pronounced \kɔ.ky\. coucou is at rank #5,440, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ku.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 31371, this pair ranks #304,211 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of cocu vs coucou
Shared letters: cou. Private to "cocu": -. Private to "coucou": -.
"cocu" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "coucou" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "cocu" and "coucou" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "cocu" or "coucou"?
Remembering cocu vs coucou
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “cocu”; for a noun, it's “coucou”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “cocu” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable