Which to use
“cordons” and “cotons” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #24,531
- “cordons” frequency rank
- #46,680
- “cotons” frequency rank
- 71211
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cordons | cotons |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Pluriel de cordon. | Pluriel de coton. |
Where the eye mixes cordons and cotons
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between cordons and cotons
A purely visual mix-up. cordons (\kɔʁ.dɔ̃\) and cotons (\kɔ.tɔ̃\) 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 71211, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cordons is recorded at frequency rank #24,531, classified as anoun, pronounced \kɔʁ.dɔ̃\. cotons is at rank #46,680, tagged as anoun, pronounced \kɔ.tɔ̃\.
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 71211, this pair ranks #48,406 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of cordons vs cotons
Shared letters: cnos. Private to "cordons": dr. Private to "cotons": t.
"cordons" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC · "cotons" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "cordons" for "cotons" ever safe?
Frequency check: "cordons" vs "cotons" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "cordons" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "cotons" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #48,406 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "cordons" and "cotons" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "coon vs cotons". 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 #48,406 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.