Which to use
“colons” is a noun and “commons” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #8,675
- “colons” frequency rank
- #23,806
- “commons” frequency rank
- 32481
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | colons | commons |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Pluriel de colon. | Première personne du pluriel de l’indicatif présent du verbe commer. |
Where the eye mixes colons and commons
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses colons with commons
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: colons is \kɔ.lɔ̃\ while commons is \kɔ.mɔ̃\. 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 (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32481, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
colons is recorded at frequency rank #8,675, classified as anoun, pronounced \kɔ.lɔ̃\. commons is at rank #23,806, tagged as averb, pronounced \kɔ.mɔ̃\.
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 32481, this pair ranks #296,980 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of colons vs commons
Shared letters: cnos. Private to "colons": l. Private to "commons": m.
"colons" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC · "commons" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "colons" and "commons" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "colons" or "commons"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "colons" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "commons" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #296,980 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "colons" and "commons" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "commons vs compos". 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 #296,980 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.