Which to use
“causes” and “clause” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,333
- “causes” frequency rank
- #7,205
- “clause” frequency rank
- 9538
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | causes | clause |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of cause | A group of words that contains a subject and a verb; it may be part of a sentence or may constitute the whole sentence, depending on the syntax in each instance. |
Where the eye mixes causes and clause
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: causes vs clause
A purely visual mix-up. causes (/ˈkɔːzɪz/) and clause (/klɔːz/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 5 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 9538, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
causes is recorded at frequency rank #2,333, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈkɔːzɪz/. clause is at rank #7,205, tagged as anoun, pronounced /klɔːz/.
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 9538, this pair ranks #496,883 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of causes vs clause
Shared letters: acesu. Private to "causes": -. Private to "clause": l.
"causes" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC · "clause" · 6 letters · shape CCVVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "causes" for "clause" ever safe?
Frequency check: "causes" vs "clause" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "causes" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "clause" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #496,883 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "causes" and "clause" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "chaise vs clause". 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 #496,883 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.