Which to use
“samouraï” and “Samurai” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #22,089
- “samouraï” frequency rank
- #43,136
- “Samurai” frequency rank
- 65225
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | samouraï | Samurai |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Dans le Japon féodal, soldat de situation noble, vassal d’un daimyo et qui respecte le bushido. | Samouraï. |
Where the eye mixes samouraï and Samurai
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between samouraï and Samurai
A purely visual mix-up. samouraï (\sa.mu.ʁaj\) and Samurai (\zamuˈʁaɪ̯\) 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 65225, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
samouraï is recorded at frequency rank #22,089, classified as anoun, pronounced \sa.mu.ʁaj\. Samurai is at rank #43,136, tagged as anoun, pronounced \zamuˈʁaɪ̯\.
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 65225, this pair ranks #73,285 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of samouraï vs Samurai
Shared letters: amrsu. Private to "samouraï": oï. Private to "Samurai": i.
"samouraï" · 8 letters · shape CVCVVCVC · "Samurai" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVV
Known mistypes of this pair
- Samurai ← asmurai · sammurai · samruai · samuari · samuria · samurrai · saumrai · smaurai
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "samouraï" and "Samurai" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "samouraï" or "Samurai"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "samouraï" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Samurai" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #73,285 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "samouraï" and "Samurai" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Samira vs Samurai". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #73,285 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.