Which to use
“coeur” is a typographic variant and “cous” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #841
- “coeur” frequency rank
- #38,734
- “cous” frequency rank
- 39575
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | coeur | cous |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Variante typographique de cœur. | Pierre à aiguiser utilisée par les faucheurs. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set coeur and cous apart are highlighted. They share 3 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: coeur is \kœʁ\ while cous is \kus\. 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 (typographic variant vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39575, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
coeur is recorded at frequency rank #841, classified as atypographic variant, pronounced \kœʁ\. cous is at rank #38,734, tagged as anoun, pronounced \kus\.
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 39575, this pair ranks #246,950 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of coeur vs cous
Shared letters: cou. Private to "coeur": er. Private to "cous": s.
"coeur" · 5 letters · shape CVVVC · "cous" · 4 letters · shape CVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "coeur" and "cous" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "coeur" or "cous"?
Remembering coeur vs cous
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a typographic variant, it's “coeur”; for a noun, it's “cous”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “coeur” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable