laborieusevslaborieuxWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“laborieuse” and “laborieux” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#32,459
“laborieuse” frequency rank
#23,265
“laborieux” frequency rank
55724
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature laborieuse laborieux
Definition Qui travaille beaucoup. Qui travaille beaucoup, qui aime le travail.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set laborieuse and laborieux apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

10 ch
laborieuse
9 ch
laborieux

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. laborieuse (\la.bɔ.ʁjøz\) and laborieux (\la.bɔ.ʁjø\) 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 55724, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

laborieuse is recorded at frequency rank #32,459, classified as anadj, pronounced \la.bɔ.ʁjøz\. laborieux is at rank #23,265, tagged as anadj, pronounced \la.bɔ.ʁjø\.

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 55724, this pair ranks #125,614 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of laborieuse vs laborieux

Shared letters: abeiloru. Private to "laborieuse": s. Private to "laborieux": x.

"laborieuse" · 10 letters · shape CVCVCVVVCV  ·  "laborieux" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCVVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • laborieusealborieuse · labborieuse · laboireuse · laboreiuse · laboriesue · laborieues · laborieusse · laboriuese
  • laborieuxalborieux · labborieux · laboireux · laboreiux · laborieuxx · laboriexu · laboriuex · laborrieux

Frequency comparison

laborieuse#32,459
laborieux#23,265

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "laborieuse" and "laborieux" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\la.bɔ.ʁjøz\ versus \la.bɔ.ʁjø\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "laborieuse" or "laborieux"?
"laborieux" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #23,265 in our French list, against #32,459 for "laborieuse". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering laborieuse vs laborieux

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “laborieuse” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list