Which to use
“ni” is a conjunction and “nom” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #274
- “ni” frequency rank
- #214
- “nom” frequency rank
- 488
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ni | nom |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Conjonction de coordination négative qui correspond à et affirmatif. | Mot ou groupe de mots permettant de nommer un être ou une chose. Un nom peut être un nom commun, une locution nominale ou un nom propre. |
Where the eye mixes ni and nom
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Why the eye confuses ni with nom
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: ni is \ni\ while nom is \nɔ̃\. 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 (conjunction vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 488, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ni is recorded at frequency rank #274, classified as aconj, pronounced \ni\. nom is at rank #214, tagged as anoun, pronounced \nɔ̃\.
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 488, this pair ranks #439,558 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of ni vs nom
Shared letters: n. Private to "ni": i. Private to "nom": mo.
"ni" · 2 letters · shape CV · "nom" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "ni" for "nom" ever safe?
Which is more common, "ni" or "nom"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "ni" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "nom" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #439,558 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ni" and "nom" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ni vs nop". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #439,558 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.