râlevsrazWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#18,052
“râle” frequency rank
#21,750
“raz” frequency rank
39802
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature râle raz
Definition Bruit rauque produit par la respiration quand elle est embarrassée, particulièrement chez les agonisants. Courant marin violent qui se fait sentir dans un détroit, dans un canal entre deux terres rapprochées.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set râle and raz apart are highlighted. They share 1 letter in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
râle
3 ch
raz

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. râle (\ʁal\) and raz (\ʁa\) 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 39802, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

râle is recorded at frequency rank #18,052, classified as anoun, pronounced \ʁal\. raz is at rank #21,750, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ʁa\.

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 39802, this pair ranks #245,252 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of râle vs raz

Shared letters: r. Private to "râle": elâ. Private to "raz": az.

"râle" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "raz" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Frequency comparison

râle#18,052
raz#21,750

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "râle" and "raz" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\ʁal\ versus \ʁa\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "râle" or "raz"?
"râle" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #18,052 in our French list, against #21,750 for "raz". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering râle vs raz

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 “râle” 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