Which to use
“taux” is a noun and “totaux” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #779
- “taux” frequency rank
- #27,269
- “totaux” frequency rank
- 28048
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | taux | totaux |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Prix, montant, tarif fixé par l'État. | Masculin pluriel de total. |
Where the eye mixes taux and totaux
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. taux runs 4 letters (CVVC) against totaux's 6 (CVCVVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses taux with totaux
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: taux is \to\ while totaux is \tɔ.to\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “taux” sits inside “totaux”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 28048, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
taux is recorded at frequency rank #779, classified as anoun, pronounced \to\. totaux is at rank #27,269, tagged as anadj, pronounced \tɔ.to\.
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 28048, this pair ranks #325,221 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of taux vs totaux
Shared letters: atux. Private to "taux": -. Private to "totaux": o.
"taux" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "totaux" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "taux" and "totaux" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "taux" vs "totaux" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "taux" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "totaux" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #325,221 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "taux" and "totaux" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "taux vs tun". 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 #325,221 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.