Which to use
“chains” and “chaise” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #5,944
- “chains” frequency rank
- #44,680
- “chaise” frequency rank
- 50624
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | chains | chaise |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of chain | An open, horse-drawn carriage for one or two people, usually with one horse and two wheels. |
Where the eye mixes chains and chaise
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. chains (CCVVCC) and chaise (CCVVCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses chains with chaise
A purely visual mix-up. chains (/t͡ʃeɪnz/) and chaise (/ʃeɪz/) 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 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 50624, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
chains is recorded at frequency rank #5,944, classified as anoun, pronounced /t͡ʃeɪnz/. chaise is at rank #44,680, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ʃeɪz/.
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 50624, this pair ranks #172,596 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of chains vs chaise
Shared letters: achis. Private to "chains": n. Private to "chaise": e.
"chains" · 6 letters · shape CCVVCC · "chaise" · 6 letters · shape CCVVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "chains" and "chaise" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary English text, does "chains" or "chaise" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "chains" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "chaise" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #172,596 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "chains" and "chaise" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Chaim vs chaise". 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 #172,596 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.