likesvstimesWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: likes is a verb, times is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

By · Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org ·

Which to use

“likes” is a verb and “times” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#16,771
“likes” frequency rank
#5,431
“times” frequency rank
22202
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature likes times
Definition 3. Person Singular Indikativ Präsens Aktiv des Verbs like Plural des Substantivs time

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set likes and times apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
likes
5 ch
times

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: likes is averb and timesanoun. On the page they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 22202, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

likes is recorded at frequency rank #16,771, classified as averb, pronounced […]. times is at rank #5,431, tagged as anoun, pronounced […].

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 22202, this pair ranks #1,877,044 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of likes vs times

Shared letters: eis. Private to "likes": kl. Private to "times": mt.

"likes" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "times" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • likes ← ilkes · lieks · likess · likkes · likse · lkies · llikes
  • times ← itmes · tiems · timess · timmes · timse · tmies · ttimes

Frequency comparison

likes#16,771
times#5,431

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "likes" and "times" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "likes" is a verb and "times" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "likes" or "times"?
"times" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,431 in our German list, against #16,771 for "likes". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering likes vs times

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “likes”; for a noun, it's “times”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “likes” 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