English homophones
arc/ark
"arc" (#5,005 written frequency) beats "ark" (#10,324) in this 2-word /ɑːk/ cluster. Size rank #133 of 1,007 English groups.
Data vintage
Frequency splits the cluster
These 2 spellings keep the same /ɑːk/ reading, but written frequency splits them hard: "arc" leads at #5,005, with "ark" trailing at #10,324.
Spelling pairs in this cluster
- Single-letter fork: "arc" keeps c, "ark" writes k at letter 3.
Orthographic DNA of this cluster
Shared letters across arc, ark: ar. Private letters are the ones only one spelling owns: the eye's fastest tell once sound is out of the picture.
arc
3 letters · 1 vowels · shape VCC
Inventory acr · private c
ark
3 letters · 1 vowels · shape VCC
Inventory akr · private k
Pick the spelling from the meaning
- Write "arc" when you mean: That part of a circle which a heavenly body appears to pass through as it moves above and below the horizon.
- Write "ark" when you mean: A large box with a flat lid.
Each spelling
Nearby English homophone groups
What to do next
You've reviewed the 2-spelling cluster (arc, ark). Here's where to go from here.
- "arc" is the most frequent headword in this 2-spelling cluster (rank #5,005 in English). Full entry
- Among English homophone groups, a cluster of 2 spellings ranks #133 by size (1,007 groups in this vintage). Corpus statistics
- Explore a nearby 2-spelling cluster: air · ere. Nearby cluster
- Each spelling in "arc, ark" has its own headword page with definition, IPA, and misspelling variants. First entry
PlainSpell is a reference corpus, not spelling advice. Verify unusual forms in context.