Which to use
“ake” is a verb and “Ames” is a name - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #46,292
- “ake” frequency rank
- #16,633
- “Ames” frequency rank
- 62925
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ake | Ames |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Obsolete spelling of ache. | A surname. |
Where the eye mixes ake and Ames
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses ake with Ames
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: ake is /eɪk/ while Ames is /eɪmz/. 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 (verb vs name), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 62925, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ake is recorded at frequency rank #46,292, classified as averb, pronounced /eɪk/. Ames is at rank #16,633, tagged as aname, pronounced /eɪmz/.
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 62925, this pair ranks #85,786 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of ake vs Ames
Shared letters: ae. Private to "ake": k. Private to "Ames": ms.
"ake" · 3 letters · shape VCV · "Ames" · 4 letters · shape VCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- Ames ← aems · amess · ammes · amse · maes
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "ake" and "Ames" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary English text, does "ake" or "Ames" show up more?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "ake" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Ames" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #85,786 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ake" and "Ames" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ake vs amb". 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 #85,786 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.