Which to use
“cons” is an adjective and “coq” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #3,243
- “cons” frequency rank
- #8,980
- “coq” frequency rank
- 12223
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cons | coq |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Masculin pluriel de con. | Genre d’oiseau de l’ordre des galliformes et de la famille des phasianidés, comprenant quatre espèces habitant les forêts humides du sud de l’Asie, de l’Inde jusqu’à l’Indonésie, au dimorphisme sexuel extrêmement prononcé, et dont une espèce, le coq doré (Gallus gallus) est l’ancêtre universel du coq domestique de basse-cour. |
Where the eye mixes cons and coq
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between cons and coq
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: cons is \kɔ̃\ while coq is \kɔk\. 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 (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 12223, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cons is recorded at frequency rank #3,243, classified as anadj, pronounced \kɔ̃\. coq is at rank #8,980, tagged as anoun, pronounced \kɔk\.
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 12223, this pair ranks #406,109 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of cons vs coq
Shared letters: co. Private to "cons": ns. Private to "coq": q.
"cons" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "coq" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- cons ← ccons · cnos · conns · conss · cosn · ocns
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "cons" for "coq" ever safe?
Frequency check: "cons" vs "coq" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "cons" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "coq" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #406,109 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "cons" and "coq" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "CCE vs coq". 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 #406,109 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.