deuxvsdunWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“deux” and “dun” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#71
“deux” frequency rank
#16,344
“dun” frequency rank
16415
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature deux dun
Definition Un plus un. Marron grisâtre #DAC8AE.

Where the eye mixes deux and dun

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.

4 ch
deux
3 ch
dun

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. deux (\dø\) and dun (\dʌn\) 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 16415, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

deux is recorded at frequency rank #71, classified as anadj, pronounced \dø\. dun is at rank #16,344, tagged as anadj, pronounced \dʌn\.

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 16415, this pair ranks #387,951 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of deux vs dun

Shared letters: du. Private to "deux": ex. Private to "dun": n.

"deux" · 4 letters · shape CVVC  ·  "dun" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • deuxddeux · deuxx · dexu · duex · edux

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "deux" and "dun" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\dø\ versus \dʌn\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "deux" or "dun"?
"deux" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #71 in our French list, against #16,344 for "dun". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list