Which to use
“aims” and “animus” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #5,004
- “aims” frequency rank
- #41,505
- “animus” frequency rank
- 46509
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | aims | animus |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of aim | The basic impulses and instincts which govern one's actions. |
Where the eye mixes aims and animus
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between aims and animus
A purely visual mix-up. aims (/eɪmz/) and animus (/ˈæ.nɪ.məs/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 46509, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
aims is recorded at frequency rank #5,004, classified as anoun, pronounced /eɪmz/. animus is at rank #41,505, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈæ.nɪ.məs/.
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 46509, this pair ranks #211,093 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of aims vs animus
Shared letters: aims. Private to "aims": -. Private to "animus": nu.
"aims" · 4 letters · shape VVCC · "animus" · 6 letters · shape VCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "aims" for "animus" ever safe?
Frequency check: "aims" vs "animus" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "aims" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "animus" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #211,093 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "aims" and "animus" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "amicus vs animus". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #211,093 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.