Which to use
“feux” and “fléaux” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,756
- “feux” frequency rank
- #37,816
- “fléaux” frequency rank
- 41572
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | feux | fléaux |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Feux tricolores. | Pluriel de fléau. |
Where the eye mixes feux and fléaux
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. feux runs 4 letters (CVVC) against fléaux's 6 (CCVVVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses feux with fléaux
A purely visual mix-up. feux (\fø\) and fléaux (\fle.o\) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 41572, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
feux is recorded at frequency rank #3,756, classified as anoun, pronounced \fø\. fléaux is at rank #37,816, tagged as anoun, pronounced \fle.o\.
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 41572, this pair ranks #232,138 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of feux vs fléaux
Shared letters: fux. Private to "feux": e. Private to "fléaux": alé.
"feux" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "fléaux" · 6 letters · shape CCVVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- feux ← efux · feuxx · fexu · ffeux · fuex
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "feux" for "fléaux" ever safe?
Which is more common, "feux" or "fléaux"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "feux" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "fléaux" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #232,138 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "feux" and "fléaux" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "fléaux vs fuseaux". 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 #232,138 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.