Which to use
“constant” and “coûtant” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #6,068
- “constant” frequency rank
- #37,752
- “coûtant” frequency rank
- 43820
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | constant | coûtant |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Qui a de la constance. | Qui coûte. |
Where the eye mixes constant and coûtant
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. constant runs 8 letters (CVCCCVCC) against coûtant's 7 (CVVCVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: constant vs coûtant
A purely visual mix-up. constant ([kɔ̃s.tɑ̃]) and coûtant (\ku.tɑ̃\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 43820, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
constant is recorded at frequency rank #6,068, classified as anadj, pronounced [kɔ̃s.tɑ̃]. coûtant is at rank #37,752, tagged as anadj, pronounced \ku.tɑ̃\.
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 43820, this pair ranks #215,137 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of constant vs coûtant
Shared letters: acnot. Private to "constant": s. Private to "coûtant": û.
"constant" · 8 letters · shape CVCCCVCC · "coûtant" · 7 letters · shape CVVCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- constant ← cconstant · cnostant · connstant · consatnt · consstant · constannt · constantt · constatn
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "constant" and "coûtant" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "constant" or "coûtant"?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "constant" and "coûtant" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "constant" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "coûtant" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #215,137 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "constant" and "coûtant" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "count vs coûtant". 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 #215,137 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.