Which to use
“ass” is a noun and “at” is a preposition - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #1,065
- “ass” frequency rank
- #21
- “at” frequency rank
- 1086
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ass | at |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Any of several species of horse-like animals, especially Equus asinus, the domesticated of which are used as beasts of burden. | In, near, or in the general vicinity of (a particular place). |
Where the eye mixes ass and at
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Visual trap between ass and at
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: ass is /æs/ while at is /æt/. 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 (noun vs preposition), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 1086, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ass is recorded at frequency rank #1,065, classified as anoun, pronounced /æs/. at is at rank #21, tagged as aprep, pronounced /æt/.
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 1086, this pair ranks #528,135 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of ass vs at
Shared letters: a. Private to "ass": s. Private to "at": t.
"ass" · 3 letters · shape VCC · "at" · 2 letters · shape VC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "ass" and "at" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "ass" or "at"?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "ass" and "at" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "ass" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "at" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #528,135 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ass" and "at" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ass vs Asta". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #528,135 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.