Which to use
“coût” is a noun and “coûte” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #1,767
- “coût” frequency rank
- #2,915
- “coûte” frequency rank
- 4682
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | coût | coûte |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Ce qu’une chose coûte ; son prix de revient. | Première personne du singulier de l’indicatif présent de coûter. |
Where the eye mixes coût and coûte
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: coût vs coûte
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: coût is \ku\ while coûte is \kut\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “coût” sits inside “coûte”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 4682, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
coût is recorded at frequency rank #1,767, classified as anoun, pronounced \ku\. coûte is at rank #2,915, tagged as averb, pronounced \kut\.
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 4682, this pair ranks #430,962 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of coût vs coûte
Shared letters: cotû. Private to "coût": -. Private to "coûte": e.
"coût" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "coûte" · 5 letters · shape CVVCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "coût" and "coûte" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary French text, does "coût" or "coûte" show up more?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "coût" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "coûte" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #430,962 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "coût" and "coûte" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "coupa vs coûte". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #430,962 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.