Which to use
“coûte” and “coûter” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,915
- “coûte” frequency rank
- #8,089
- “coûter” frequency rank
- 11004
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | coûte | coûter |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Première personne du singulier de l’indicatif présent de coûter. | Valoir tel ou tel prix d’achat. |
Where the eye mixes coûte and coûter
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between coûte and coûter
A purely visual mix-up. coûte (\kut\) and coûter (\ku.te\) 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 extra letter(s) - “coûte” sits inside “coûter”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 11004, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
coûte is recorded at frequency rank #2,915, classified as averb, pronounced \kut\. coûter is at rank #8,089, tagged as averb, pronounced \ku.te\.
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 11004, this pair ranks #410,835 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of coûte vs coûter
Shared letters: ceotû. Private to "coûte": -. Private to "coûter": r.
"coûte" · 5 letters · shape CVVCV · "coûter" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "coûte" and "coûter" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary French text, does "coûte" or "coûter" show up more?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "coûte" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "coûter" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #410,835 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "coûte" and "coûter" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "courber vs coûter". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #410,835 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.