Which to use
“ado” is a noun and “ake” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #22,276
- “ado” frequency rank
- #46,292
- “ake” frequency rank
- 68568
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ado | ake |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Trouble; troublesome business; fuss, commotion. | Obsolete spelling of ache. |
Where the eye mixes ado and ake
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Visual trap between ado and ake
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: ado is /əˈduː/ while ake is /eɪk/. 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 (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 68568, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ado is recorded at frequency rank #22,276, classified as anoun, pronounced /əˈduː/. 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 68568, this pair ranks #58,325 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of ado vs ake
Shared letters: a. Private to "ado": do. Private to "ake": ek.
"ado" · 3 letters · shape VCV · "ake" · 3 letters · shape VCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "ado" for "ake" ever safe?
In ordinary English text, does "ado" or "ake" show up more?
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 "ado" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ake" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #58,325 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ado" and "ake" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ake vs amb". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #58,325 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.