Which to use
“hibou” is a noun and “hou” is an intj - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #22,887
- “hibou” frequency rank
- #26,040
- “hou” frequency rank
- 48927
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | hibou | hou |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Nom ambigu désignant de façon générale tout rapace nocturne de l'ordre des strigiformes, caractérisé par de grands yeux frontaux entourés par un cercle de plumes, et qui porte notamment des aigrettes (faisceaux de plumes) sur la tête, caractéristique le distinguant principalement des chouettes, qui est également un substantif ambigu désignant plusieurs genres de rapaces nocturnes peu apparentés les uns aux autres. | Suppose le cri d’un fantôme. |
Where the eye mixes hibou and hou
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. hibou runs 5 letters (CVCVV) against hou's 3 (CVV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Visual trap between hibou and hou
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: hibou is ^((h aspiré))\i.bu\ while hou is ^((h aspiré))\u\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs intj), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 48927, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
hibou is recorded at frequency rank #22,887, classified as anoun, pronounced ^((h aspiré))\i.bu\. hou is at rank #26,040, tagged as anintj, pronounced ^((h aspiré))\u\.
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 48927, this pair ranks #174,941 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of hibou vs hou
Shared letters: hou. Private to "hibou": bi. Private to "hou": -.
"hibou" · 5 letters · shape CVCVV · "hou" · 3 letters · shape CVV
Known mistypes of this pair
- hibou ← hbiou · hhibou · hibbou · hibuo · hiobu · ihbou
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "hibou" for "hou" ever safe?
Which is more common, "hibou" or "hou"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "hibou" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "hou" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #174,941 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "hibou" and "hou" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "hae vs hou". 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 #174,941 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.