Which to use
“coûteuse” and “coûteux” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #16,331
- “coûteuse” frequency rank
- #9,460
- “coûteux” frequency rank
- 25791
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | coûteuse | coûteux |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Féminin singulier de coûteux. | Qui coûte cher. |
Where the eye mixes coûteuse and coûteux
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. coûteuse runs 8 letters (CVVCVVCV) against coûteux's 7 (CVVCVVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between coûteuse and coûteux
A purely visual mix-up. coûteuse (\ku.tøz\) and coûteux (\ku.tø\) 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 25791, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
coûteuse is recorded at frequency rank #16,331, classified as anadj, pronounced \ku.tøz\. coûteux is at rank #9,460, tagged as anadj, pronounced \ku.tø\.
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 25791, this pair ranks #338,829 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of coûteuse vs coûteux
Shared letters: ceotuû. Private to "coûteuse": s. Private to "coûteux": x.
"coûteuse" · 8 letters · shape CVVCVVCV · "coûteux" · 7 letters · shape CVVCVVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "coûteuse" and "coûteux" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "coûteuse" or "coûteux"?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "coûteuse" and "coûteux" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "coûteuse" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "coûteux" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #338,829 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "coûteuse" and "coûteux" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "coauteur vs coûteux". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #338,829 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.