Which to use
“alarm” and “atari” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #4,426
- “alarm” frequency rank
- #29,546
- “atari” frequency rank
- 33972
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | alarm | atari |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A summons to arms, as on the approach of an enemy. | A move that threatens the immediate capture of one or more stones. |
Where the eye mixes alarm and atari
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: alarm vs atari
A purely visual mix-up. alarm (/əˈlɑːm/) and atari (/əˈtɑːˌɹi/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33972, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
alarm is recorded at frequency rank #4,426, classified as anoun, pronounced /əˈlɑːm/. atari is at rank #29,546, tagged as anoun, pronounced /əˈtɑːˌɹi/.
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 33972, this pair ranks #324,782 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of alarm vs atari
Shared letters: ar. Private to "alarm": lm. Private to "atari": it.
"alarm" · 5 letters · shape VCVCC · "atari" · 5 letters · shape VCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "alarm" and "atari" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "alarm" or "atari"?
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 "alarm" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "atari" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #324,782 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "alarm" and "atari" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Amari vs atari". 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 #324,782 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.