Which to use
“baits” is a noun and “bates” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #44,074
- “baits” frequency rank
- #12,189
- “bates” frequency rank
- 56263
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | baits | bates |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of bait | third-person singular simple present indicative of bate |
Same sound, different letters: baits vs bates
Muted letters are shared; highlighted letters are the only spelling cue when pronunciation matches. Shared run: 4 letters. baits (CVVCC) and bates (CVCVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Homophone desk: baits vs bates
Say them out loud and nothing separates them: baits and bates carry the same recorded pronunciation, /beɪts/. Grammar is what tells them apart: one is anoun, the other averb, so most sentences will only accept one of them. They share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 56263, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
baits is recorded at frequency rank #44,074, classified as anoun, pronounced /beɪts/. bates is at rank #12,189, tagged as averb, pronounced /beɪts/.
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 56263, this pair ranks #127,537 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of baits vs bates
Shared letters: abst. Private to "baits": i. Private to "bates": e.
"baits" · 5 letters · shape CVVCC · "bates" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "baits" for "bates" ever safe?
Frequency check: "baits" vs "bates" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Sound matches; spelling doesn't. Use the exits below to lock the right form or check a cousin pair.
- Full dictionary entry for "baits" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "bates" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #127,537 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "baits" and "bates" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "baits vs BRICS". 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 #127,537 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.