collervscuillerWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: coller is a verb, cuiller is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“coller” is a verb and “cuiller” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#6,381
“coller” frequency rank
#37,263
“cuiller” frequency rank
43644
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature coller cuiller
Definition Joindre et faire tenir deux choses ensemble avec de la colle. Autre orthographe possible pour cuillère.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set coller and cuiller apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
coller
7 ch
cuiller

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: coller is \kɔ.le\ while cuiller is \kɥi.jɛʁ\. 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 (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 43644, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

coller is recorded at frequency rank #6,381, classified as averb, pronounced \kɔ.le\. cuiller is at rank #37,263, tagged as anoun, pronounced \kɥi.jɛʁ\.

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 43644, this pair ranks #216,478 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of coller vs cuiller

Shared letters: celr. Private to "coller": o. Private to "cuiller": iu.

"coller" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "cuiller" · 7 letters · shape CVVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • collerccoller · cloler · colelr · coler · collerr · collre · ocller
  • cuillerccuiller · ciuller · cuilelr · cuiler · cuillerr · cuillre · culiler · uciller

Frequency comparison

coller#6,381
cuiller#37,263

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "coller" and "cuiller" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "coller" is a verb and "cuiller" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "coller" or "cuiller"?
"coller" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #6,381 in our French list, against #37,263 for "cuiller". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering coller vs cuiller

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “coller”; for a noun, it's “cuiller”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “coller” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list