Which to use
“contrer” is a verb and “counter” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #8,979
- “contrer” frequency rank
- #35,451
- “counter” frequency rank
- 44430
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | contrer | counter |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Annoncer que l'on tient contre celui qui a le premier déclaré qu'il jouait, et qu'on compte le punir sévèrement. | Guichet. |
Where the eye mixes contrer and counter
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: contrer vs counter
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: contrer is \kɔ̃.tʁe\ while counter is \ˈkaʊn.tə(ɹ)\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 3 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 44430, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
contrer is recorded at frequency rank #8,979, classified as averb, pronounced \kɔ̃.tʁe\. counter is at rank #35,451, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ˈkaʊn.tə(ɹ)\.
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 44430, this pair ranks #210,540 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of contrer vs counter
Shared letters: cenort. Private to "contrer": -. Private to "counter": u.
"contrer" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC · "counter" · 7 letters · shape CVVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "contrer" and "counter" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "contrer" vs "counter" - 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 "contrer" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "counter" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #210,540 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "contrer" and "counter" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "count vs counter". 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 #210,540 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.