Which to use
“lac” and “Lai” are a confusable German pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #37,041
- “lac” frequency rank
- #47,552
- “Lai” frequency rank
- 84593
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lac | Lai |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | See | reines Instrumentalstück der mittelalterlichen französischen Musik |
Where the eye mixes lac and Lai
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. lac (CVC) and Lai (CVV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between lac and Lai
A purely visual mix-up. lac ([lak]) and Lai ([lɛː]) 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 a single letter - c in “lac” becomes i in “Lai”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 84593, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
lac is recorded at frequency rank #37,041, classified as anoun, pronounced [lak]. Lai is at rank #47,552, tagged as anoun, pronounced [lɛː].
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 84593, this pair ranks #121,307 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of lac vs Lai
Shared letters: al. Private to "lac": c. Private to "Lai": i.
"lac" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "Lai" · 3 letters · shape CVV
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "lac" and "Lai" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "lac" or "Lai"?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "lac" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Lai" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #121,307 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "lac" and "Lai" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Lai vs lame". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #121,307 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.