English homophones
gaff/gaffe
"gaff" (#42,659 written frequency) beats "gaffe" (#43,660) in this 2-word /ɡæf/ cluster. Size rank #133 of 1,007 English groups.
Data vintage
Frequency splits the cluster
These 2 spellings keep the same /ɡæf/ reading, but written frequency splits them hard: "gaff" leads at #42,659, with "gaffe" trailing at #43,660.
Spelling pairs in this cluster
- Shared stem "gaff" then splits - "gaff" (4 letters) vs "gaffe" (5).
Orthographic DNA of this cluster
Shared letters across gaff, gaffe: afg. Private letters are the ones only one spelling owns: the eye's fastest tell once sound is out of the picture.
gaff
4 letters · 1 vowels · shape CVCC
Inventory afg · no private letters vs siblings
gaffe
5 letters · 2 vowels · shape CVCCV
Inventory aefg · private e
Pick the spelling from the meaning
- Write "gaff" when you mean: A tool consisting of a large metal hook with a handle or pole, especially the one used to pull large fish aboard a boat.
- Write "gaffe" when you mean: A foolish and embarrassing error, especially one made in public; a social blunder; a breach of etiquette.
Known mistypes of these spellings
Edit-distance variants recorded against this cluster: useful when a search or OCR feed lands on the wrong form.
Each spelling
Nearby English homophone groups
What to do next
You've reviewed the 2-spelling cluster (gaff, gaffe). Here's where to go from here.
- "gaff" is the most frequent headword in this 2-spelling cluster (rank #42,659 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: green · Greene. Nearby cluster
- Each spelling in "gaff, gaffe" 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.