Which to use
“bide” is a verb and “bis” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #43,526
- “bide” frequency rank
- #18,497
- “bis” frequency rank
- 62023
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | bide | bis |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To bear; to endure; to tolerate. | plural of bi |
Where the eye mixes bide and bis
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: bide vs bis
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: bide is /baɪd/ while bis is /baɪz/. 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 62023, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
bide is recorded at frequency rank #43,526, classified as averb, pronounced /baɪd/. bis is at rank #18,497, tagged as anoun, pronounced /baɪz/.
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 62023, this pair ranks #90,809 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of bide vs bis
Shared letters: bi. Private to "bide": de. Private to "bis": s.
"bide" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "bis" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- bide ← bbide · bdie · bidde · bied · ibde
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "bide" for "bis" ever safe?
Frequency check: "bide" vs "bis" - 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 "bide" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "bis" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #90,809 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "bide" and "bis" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "bide vs Bodie". 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 #90,809 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.