alotvsalsoWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: alot is a noun, also is an adverb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“alot” is a noun and “also” is an adverb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#7,879
“alot” frequency rank
#70
“also” frequency rank
7949
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature alot also
Definition Alternative form of a lot. In addition; besides; as well; further; too.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set alot and also apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
alot
4 ch
also

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

alot and also form a confusable pair in the English index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 7949, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

alot is recorded at frequency rank #7,879, classified as anoun. also is at rank #70, tagged as anadv, pronounced /ˈɔːl.səʊ/.

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 7949, this pair ranks #504,822 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Frequency comparison

alot#7,879
also#70

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "alot" and "also" be used interchangeably?
No, "alot" and "also" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering alot vs also

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “alot”; for an adverb, it's “also”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “alot” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list