Which to use
“bray” and “break” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #19,275
- “bray” frequency rank
- #670
- “break” frequency rank
- 19945
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | bray | break |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Of an animal (now chiefly of animals related to the ass or donkey, and the camel): to make its cry. | To separate into two or more pieces, to fracture or crack, by a process that cannot easily be reversed for reassembly. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set bray and break apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
bray and break form a confusable pair in the English index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 19945, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
bray is recorded at frequency rank #19,275, classified as averb, pronounced /bɹeɪ/. break is at rank #670, tagged as averb, pronounced /bɹeɪk/.
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 19945, this pair ranks #434,596 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "bray" and "break" be used interchangeably?
Remembering bray vs break
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “bray” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable