gatesvsgratisWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: gates is a verb, gratis is an adverb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“gates” is a verb and “gratis” is an adverb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#12,080
“gates” frequency rank
#2,447
“gratis” frequency rank
14527
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature gates gratis
Definition 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs gate ohne eine Bezahlung zu verlangen

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set gates and gratis apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
gates
6 ch
gratis

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

gates and gratis form a confusable pair in the German index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 14527, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

gates is recorded at frequency rank #12,080, classified as averb, pronounced [ɡeɪts]. gratis is at rank #2,447, tagged as anadv, pronounced [ˈɡʁaːtɪs].

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 14527, this pair ranks #1,950,576 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Frequency comparison

gates#12,080
gratis#2,447

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "gates" and "gratis" be used interchangeably?
No, "gates" and "gratis" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering gates vs gratis

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “gates”; for an adverb, it's “gratis”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “gates” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list