Which to use
“mole” is a noun and “moult” is an adverb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #38,923
- “mole” frequency rank
- #22,008
- “moult” frequency rank
- 60931
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | mole | moult |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Unité de mesure de quantité de matière du Système international, dont le symbole est mol. Une mole contient autant de particules individuelles qu’il y a d’atomes dans 12 grammes de carbone 12 ; ce nombre est appelé nombre d’Avogadro, et est de l’ordre de 6,022×10²³. | et ou Beaucoup. Note d’usage : Attaché à un verbe. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set mole and moult apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: mole is \mɔl\ while moult is \mu\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adverb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 60931, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
mole is recorded at frequency rank #38,923, classified as anoun, pronounced \mɔl\. moult is at rank #22,008, tagged as anadv, pronounced \mu\.
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 60931, this pair ranks #95,010 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of mole vs moult
Shared letters: lmo. Private to "mole": e. Private to "moult": tu.
"mole" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "moult" · 5 letters · shape CVVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "mole" and "moult" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "mole" or "moult"?
Remembering mole vs moult
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “mole”; for an adverb, it's “moult”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “mole” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable