têtuvstotWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#23,059
“têtu” frequency rank
#15,273
“tot” frequency rank
38332
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature têtu tot
Definition Opiniâtre, obstiné, qui ne veut pas démordre de son idée, opinion, ou volonté. Mort, qui ne vit plus.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set têtu and tot apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
têtu
3 ch
tot

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. têtu (\tɛ.ty\) and tot (\toːt\) 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 38332, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

têtu is recorded at frequency rank #23,059, classified as anadj, pronounced \tɛ.ty\. tot is at rank #15,273, tagged as anadj, pronounced \toːt\.

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 38332, this pair ranks #255,988 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of têtu vs tot

Shared letters: t. Private to "têtu": . Private to "tot": o.

"têtu" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "tot" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Frequency comparison

têtu#23,059
tot#15,273

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "têtu" and "tot" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\tɛ.ty\ versus \toːt\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "têtu" or "tot"?
"tot" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #15,273 in our French list, against #23,059 for "têtu". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering têtu vs tot

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 “têtu” 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