Which to use
“vai” is a conjunction and “vir” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #45,367
- “vai” frequency rank
- #46,521
- “vir” frequency rank
- 91888
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | vai | vir |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Ou, ou bien. | Forme mutée de bir par adoucissement (b → v). |
Where the eye mixes vai and vir
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. vai (CVV) and vir (CVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Look-alike desk: vai vs vir
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: vai is \ʋɑi̯\ while vir is \ˈviː.r\. 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 (conjunction vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 91888, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
vai is recorded at frequency rank #45,367, classified as aconj, pronounced \ʋɑi̯\. vir is at rank #46,521, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ˈviː.r\.
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 91888, this pair ranks #3,445 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of vai vs vir
Shared letters: iv. Private to "vai": a. Private to "vir": r.
"vai" · 3 letters · shape CVV · "vir" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "vai" and "vir" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "vai" vs "vir" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "vai" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "vir" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #3,445 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "vai" and "vir" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "vir vs viv". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #3,445 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.