Which to use
“arouse” is a verb and “arse” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #32,680
- “arouse” frequency rank
- #13,462
- “arse” frequency rank
- 46142
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | arouse | arse |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To stimulate or induce (feelings); pique. | A person's buttocks; the bottom, the backside. Also: the anus; the rectum. |
Where the eye mixes arouse and arse
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between arouse and arse
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: arouse is /əˈɹaʊz/ while arse is /ɑːs/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 46142, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
arouse is recorded at frequency rank #32,680, classified as averb, pronounced /əˈɹaʊz/. arse is at rank #13,462, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ɑːs/.
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 46142, this pair ranks #214,542 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of arouse vs arse
Shared letters: aers. Private to "arouse": ou. Private to "arse": -.
"arouse" · 6 letters · shape VCVVCV · "arse" · 4 letters · shape VCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "arouse" for "arse" ever safe?
Which is more common, "arouse" or "arse"?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "arouse" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "arse" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #214,542 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "arouse" and "arse" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "arco vs arse". 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 #214,542 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.