Which to use
“row” and “ru” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #33,451
- “row” frequency rank
- #16,467
- “ru” frequency rank
- 49918
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | row | ru |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Ligne, rangée. | Petit ruisseau. |
Where the eye mixes row and ru
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Visual trap between row and ru
A purely visual mix-up. row (\ɹoʊ\) and ru (\ʁy\) 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 49918, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
row is recorded at frequency rank #33,451, classified as anoun, pronounced \ɹoʊ\. ru is at rank #16,467, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ʁy\.
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 49918, this pair ranks #166,815 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of row vs ru
Shared letters: r. Private to "row": ow. Private to "ru": u.
"row" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "ru" · 2 letters · shape CV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "row" for "ru" ever safe?
In ordinary French text, does "row" or "ru" show up more?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "row" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ru" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #166,815 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "row" and "ru" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "row vs roya". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #166,815 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.