Which to use
“bandy” is a verb and “bans” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #49,775
- “bandy” frequency rank
- #11,342
- “bans” frequency rank
- 61117
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | bandy | bans |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To give and receive reciprocally; to exchange. | plural of ban |
Where the eye mixes bandy and bans
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: bandy vs bans
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: bandy is /ˈbændi/ while bans is /bænz/. 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 (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 61117, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
bandy is recorded at frequency rank #49,775, classified as averb, pronounced /ˈbændi/. bans is at rank #11,342, tagged as anoun, pronounced /bænz/.
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 61117, this pair ranks #96,132 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of bandy vs bans
Shared letters: abn. Private to "bandy": dy. Private to "bans": s.
"bandy" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "bans" · 4 letters · shape CVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "bandy" for "bans" ever safe?
Frequency check: "bandy" vs "bans" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "bandy" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "bans" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #96,132 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "bandy" and "bans" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "bandy vs bendy". 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 #96,132 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.