Which to use
“périgueux” is a noun and “périlleux” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #24,732
- “périgueux” frequency rank
- #22,668
- “périlleux” frequency rank
- 47400
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | périgueux | périlleux |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Pierre noire, fort dure, qu’emploient les verriers, les émailleurs et les potiers. | Qui est dangereux ; où il y a du péril. |
Where the eye mixes périgueux and périlleux
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. périgueux (CVCVCVVVC) and périlleux (CVCVCCVVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses périgueux with périlleux
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: périgueux is \pe.ʁi.ɡø\ while périlleux is \pe.ʁi.jø\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 47400, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
périgueux is recorded at frequency rank #24,732, classified as anoun, pronounced \pe.ʁi.ɡø\. périlleux is at rank #22,668, tagged as anadj, pronounced \pe.ʁi.jø\.
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 47400, this pair ranks #187,279 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of périgueux vs périlleux
Shared letters: eipruxé. Private to "périgueux": g. Private to "périlleux": l.
"périgueux" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCVVVC · "périlleux" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "périgueux" for "périlleux" ever safe?
In ordinary French text, does "périgueux" or "périlleux" show up more?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "périgueux" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "périlleux" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #187,279 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "périgueux" and "périlleux" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "périlleux vs pouilleux". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #187,279 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.