Which to use
“cable” is a noun and “capable” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,776
- “cable” frequency rank
- #2,429
- “capable” frequency rank
- 5205
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cable | capable |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A long object used to make a physical connection. | Able and efficient; having the ability needed for a specific task; having the disposition to do something; permitting or being susceptible to something. |
Where the eye mixes cable and capable
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between cable and capable
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: cable is /ˈkeɪ.bəl/ while capable is /ˈkeɪ.pə.bəl/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 5205, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cable is recorded at frequency rank #2,776, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈkeɪ.bəl/. capable is at rank #2,429, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ˈkeɪ.pə.bəl/.
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 5205, this pair ranks #516,202 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of cable vs capable
Shared letters: abcel. Private to "cable": -. Private to "capable": p.
"cable" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "capable" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "cable" for "capable" ever safe?
Which is more common, "cable" or "capable"?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "cable" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "capable" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #516,202 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "cable" and "capable" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "cable vs Cally". 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 #516,202 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.