Which to use
“échouer” and “écouler” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #12,699
- “échouer” frequency rank
- #15,783
- “écouler” frequency rank
- 28482
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | échouer | écouler |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Donner sur le sable, sur un écueil et y stationner plus ou moins longtemps, en parlant d’une embarcation voire d’un cétacé ou de poissons. | Vendre jusqu'a épuisement ; liquider. |
Where the eye mixes échouer and écouler
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. échouer (VCCVVVC) and écouler (VCVVCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Look-alike desk: échouer vs écouler
A purely visual mix-up. échouer (\e.ʃwe\) and écouler (\e.ku.le\) 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 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 28482, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
échouer is recorded at frequency rank #12,699, classified as averb, pronounced \e.ʃwe\. écouler is at rank #15,783, tagged as averb, pronounced \e.ku.le\.
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 28482, this pair ranks #322,486 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of échouer vs écouler
Shared letters: ceorué. Private to "échouer": h. Private to "écouler": l.
"échouer" · 7 letters · shape VCCVVVC · "écouler" · 7 letters · shape VCVVCVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "échouer" and "écouler" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "échouer" or "écouler"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "échouer" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "écouler" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #322,486 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "échouer" and "écouler" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "échouée vs échouer". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #322,486 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.