Which to use
“coûte” is a verb and “croupe” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,915
- “coûte” frequency rank
- #35,453
- “croupe” frequency rank
- 38368
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | coûte | croupe |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Première personne du singulier de l’indicatif présent de coûter. | Partie arrière du corps de quadrupèdes, tel le cheval, située après les reins (région lombaire) et les hanches mais avant la queue, et qui correspond aux fesses chez l’homme. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set coûte and croupe apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
coûte and croupe form a confusable pair in the French index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 38368, 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\. croupe is at rank #35,453, tagged as anoun, pronounced \kʁup\.
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 38368, this pair ranks #255,746 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "coûte" and "croupe" be used interchangeably?
Remembering coûte vs croupe
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “coûte”; for a noun, it's “croupe”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “coûte” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable