Which to use
“DDT” and “dou” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #47,826
- “DDT” frequency rank
- #22,238
- “dou” frequency rank
- 70064
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | DDT | dou |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Dichlorodiphényltrichloroéthane, insecticide de contact neurotoxique de la famille des organochlorés, dont le nom scientifique est 1,1,1-trichloro-2,2-bis(4-chlorophényl)-éthane. | Forme mutée de tou par adoucissement (t → d). |
Where the eye mixes DDT and dou
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence. DDT (CCC) and dou (CVV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between DDT and dou
A purely visual mix-up. DDT (\de de te\) and dou (\ˈdu:\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 70064, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
DDT is recorded at frequency rank #47,826, classified as anoun, pronounced \de de te\. dou is at rank #22,238, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ˈdu:\.
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 70064, this pair ranks #52,791 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of DDT vs dou
Shared letters: d. Private to "DDT": t. Private to "dou": ou.
"DDT" · 3 letters · shape CCC · "dou" · 3 letters · shape CVV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "DDT" for "dou" ever safe?
Frequency check: "DDT" vs "dou" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "DDT" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "dou" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #52,791 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "DDT" and "dou" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "DCI vs DDT". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #52,791 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.