Which to use
“acme” is a noun and “ake” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #33,104
- “acme” frequency rank
- #46,292
- “ake” frequency rank
- 79396
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | acme | ake |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A high point: the highest point of any range, the most developed stage of any process, or the culmination of any field or historical period. | Obsolete spelling of ache. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set acme and ake apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: acme is /ˈæk.mi/ while ake is /eɪk/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 79396, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
acme is recorded at frequency rank #33,104, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈæk.mi/. ake is at rank #46,292, tagged as averb, pronounced /eɪk/.
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 79396, this pair ranks #22,189 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of acme vs ake
Shared letters: ae. Private to "acme": cm. Private to "ake": k.
"acme" · 4 letters · shape VCCV · "ake" · 3 letters · shape VCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- acme ← accme · acem · acmme
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "acme" and "ake" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "acme" or "ake"?
Remembering acme vs ake
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “acme”; for a verb, it's “ake”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “acme” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable