Which to use
“bends” is a noun and “bests” is an intj - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #18,494
- “bends” frequency rank
- #47,490
- “bests” frequency rank
- 65984
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | bends | bests |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of bend | A polite, formulaic end to a letter or email. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set bends and bests apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: bends is /bɛndz/ while bests is /bɛsts/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs intj), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 65984, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
bends is recorded at frequency rank #18,494, classified as anoun, pronounced /bɛndz/. bests is at rank #47,490, tagged as anintj, pronounced /bɛsts/.
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 65984, this pair ranks #70,155 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of bends vs bests
Shared letters: bes. Private to "bends": dn. Private to "bests": t.
"bends" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC · "bests" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "bends" and "bests" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "bends" or "bests"?
Remembering bends vs bests
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “bends”; for an intj, it's “bests”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “bends” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable