Which to use
“toux” is a noun and “true” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #15,276
- “toux” frequency rank
- #12,495
- “true” frequency rank
- 27771
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | toux | true |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Expiration spasmodique et bruyante de l’air, accompagnée d’un mouvement convulsif du larynx et de la trachée-artère. | Vrai , vraie. |
Where the eye mixes toux and true
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between toux and true
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: toux is \tu\ while true is \tɹu\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 27771, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
toux is recorded at frequency rank #15,276, classified as anoun, pronounced \tu\. true is at rank #12,495, tagged as anadj, pronounced \tɹu\.
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 27771, this pair ranks #326,868 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of toux vs true
Shared letters: tu. Private to "toux": ox. Private to "true": er.
"toux" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "true" · 4 letters · shape CCVV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "toux" and "true" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary French text, does "toux" or "true" show up more?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "toux" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "true" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #326,868 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "toux" and "true" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "toux 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 #326,868 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.