Which to use
“éclore” and “exclure” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #30,871
- “éclore” frequency rank
- #9,004
- “exclure” frequency rank
- 39875
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | éclore | exclure |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Sortir de l’œuf, en parlant de certains animaux. | Renvoyer, retrancher quelqu’un d’une société, d’un corps où il avait été admis. |
Where the eye mixes éclore and exclure
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. éclore runs 6 letters (VCCVCV) against exclure's 7 (VCCCVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses éclore with exclure
A purely visual mix-up. éclore (\e.klɔʁ\) and exclure (\ɛk.sklyʁ\) 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 39875, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
éclore is recorded at frequency rank #30,871, classified as averb, pronounced \e.klɔʁ\. exclure is at rank #9,004, tagged as averb, pronounced \ɛk.sklyʁ\.
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 39875, this pair ranks #244,690 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of éclore vs exclure
Shared letters: celr. Private to "éclore": oé. Private to "exclure": ux.
"éclore" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCV · "exclure" · 7 letters · shape VCCCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- exclure ← ecxlure · excclure · excllure · exclrue · excluer · exclurre · exculre · exlcure
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "éclore" for "exclure" ever safe?
Frequency check: "éclore" vs "exclure" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "éclore" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "exclure" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #244,690 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "éclore" and "exclure" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "écœuré vs éclore". 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 #244,690 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.