Which to use
“aud” and “aux” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #23,464
- “aud” frequency rank
- #16,176
- “aux” frequency rank
- 39640
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | aud | aux |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Alternative form of auld. | Abbreviation of auxiliary. |
Where the eye mixes aud and aux
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses aud with aux
A purely visual mix-up. aud (/əʊd/) and aux (/ˈɔks/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by a single letter - d in “aud” becomes x in “aux”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39640, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
aud is recorded at frequency rank #23,464, classified as anadj, pronounced /əʊd/. aux is at rank #16,176, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ˈɔks/.
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 39640, this pair ranks #274,837 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of aud vs aux
Shared letters: au. Private to "aud": d. Private to "aux": x.
"aud" · 3 letters · shape VVC · "aux" · 3 letters · shape VVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "aud" for "aux" ever safe?
Frequency check: "aud" vs "aux" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "aud" and "aux" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "aud" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "aux" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #274,837 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "aud" and "aux" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "amb vs aud". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #274,837 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.