shotvsShowWhat's the difference?

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

Which to use

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

#21,057
“shot” frequency rank
#1,333
“Show” frequency rank
22390
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature shot Show
Definition Präteritum (simple past) des Verbs shoot Vorführung eines (großen) Unterhaltungsprogramms vor Publikum (beispielsweise im Theater oder Varieté; oft in Fernsehen oder Radio übertragen), teilweise mit Informationscharakter

Where the spellings diverge

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

4 ch
shot
4 ch
Show

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

shot and Show 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 a single letter - t in “shot” becomes w in “Show” - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 22390, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

shot is recorded at frequency rank #21,057, classified as averb, pronounced [ʃɒt]. Show is at rank #1,333, tagged as anoun, pronounced [ʃɔʊ̯].

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 22390, this pair ranks #1,874,755 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Frequency comparison

shot#21,057
Show#1,333

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "shot" and "Show" be used interchangeably?
No, "shot" and "Show" 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 shot vs Show

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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