Which to use
“rag” is a verb and “rey” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #37,740
- “rag” frequency rank
- #22,116
- “rey” frequency rank
- 59856
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | rag | rey |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | 2. Person Singular Präsens Imperativ Aktiv des Verbs ragen | König |
Where the eye mixes rag and rey
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Why the eye confuses rag with rey
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: rag is [ʁaːk] while rey is [rej]. 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 (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 59856, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
rag is recorded at frequency rank #37,740, classified as averb, pronounced [ʁaːk]. rey is at rank #22,116, tagged as anoun, pronounced [rej].
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 59856, this pair ranks #808,756 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of rag vs rey
Shared letters: r. Private to "rag": ag. Private to "rey": ey.
"rag" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "rey" · 3 letters · shape CVV
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "rag" and "rey" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "rag" or "rey"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "rag" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "rey" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #808,756 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "rag" and "rey" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "rag vs RUB". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #808,756 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.