Which to use
“graf” and “grau” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #46,196
- “graf” frequency rank
- #41,808
- “grau” frequency rank
- 88004
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | graf | grau |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Variante orthographique de graff. | Chenal qui relie une étendue d’eau à la mer. |
Where the eye mixes graf and grau
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. graf (CCVC) and grau (CCVV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Look-alike desk: graf vs grau
A purely visual mix-up. graf (\ɡʁaf\) and grau (\ɡʁo\) 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 a single letter - f in “graf” becomes u in “grau”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 88004, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
graf is recorded at frequency rank #46,196, classified as anoun, pronounced \ɡʁaf\. grau is at rank #41,808, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ɡʁo\.
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 88004, this pair ranks #7,538 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of graf vs grau
Shared letters: agr. Private to "graf": f. Private to "grau": u.
"graf" · 4 letters · shape CCVC · "grau" · 4 letters · shape CCVV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "graf" for "grau" ever safe?
Which is more common, "graf" or "grau"?
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 "graf" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "grau" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #7,538 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "graf" and "grau" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "graf vs grow". 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 #7,538 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.