Which to use
“deux” is an adjective and “dey” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #71
- “deux” frequency rank
- #38,244
- “dey” frequency rank
- 38315
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | deux | dey |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Un plus un. | Chef militaire ottoman, vassal du bey. |
Where the eye mixes deux and dey
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses deux with dey
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: deux is \dø\ while dey is \dɛ\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 38315, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
deux is recorded at frequency rank #71, classified as anadj, pronounced \dø\. dey is at rank #38,244, tagged as anoun, pronounced \dɛ\.
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 38315, this pair ranks #256,129 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of deux vs dey
Shared letters: de. Private to "deux": ux. Private to "dey": y.
"deux" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "dey" · 3 letters · shape CVV
Known mistypes of this pair
- deux ← ddeux · deuxx · dexu · duex · edux
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "deux" for "dey" ever safe?
Frequency check: "deux" vs "dey" - 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 "deux" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "dey" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #256,129 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "deux" and "dey" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "dey vs dray". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #256,129 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.