coûtvscroûteWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“coût” and “croûte” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#1,767
“coût” frequency rank
#12,139
“croûte” frequency rank
13906
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature coût croûte
Definition Ce qu’une chose coûte ; son prix de revient. Pellicule supérieure, extérieure et solide couvrant une partie plus molle, sur un aliment ou une planète par exemple.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set coût and croûte apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
coût
6 ch
croûte

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. coût (\ku\) and croûte (\kʁut\) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 13906, 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\. croûte is at rank #12,139, tagged as anoun, pronounced \kʁut\.

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 13906, this pair ranks #399,010 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of coût vs croûte

Shared letters: cotû. Private to "coût": -. Private to "croûte": er.

"coût" · 4 letters · shape CVVC  ·  "croûte" · 6 letters · shape CCVVCV

Frequency comparison

coût#1,767
croûte#12,139

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "coût" and "croûte" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\ku\ versus \kʁut\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "coût" or "croûte"?
"coût" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #1,767 in our French list, against #12,139 for "croûte". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering coût vs croûte

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “coût” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list