Which to use
“challenge” and “challenges” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,389
- “challenge” frequency rank
- #3,046
- “challenges” frequency rank
- 4435
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | challenge | challenges |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A confrontation; a dare. | plural of challenge |
Where the eye mixes challenge and challenges
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: challenge vs challenges
A purely visual mix-up. challenge (/ˈt͡ʃæl.ɪnd͡ʒ/) and challenges (/ˈt͡ʃæl.ɪn.d͡ʒɪz/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “challenge” sits inside “challenges”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 4435, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
challenge is recorded at frequency rank #1,389, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈt͡ʃæl.ɪnd͡ʒ/. challenges is at rank #3,046, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈt͡ʃæl.ɪn.d͡ʒɪz/.
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 4435, this pair ranks #518,937 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of challenge vs challenges
Shared letters: aceghln. Private to "challenge": -. Private to "challenges": s.
"challenge" · 9 letters · shape CCVCCVCCV · "challenges" · 10 letters · shape CCVCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- challenge ← cahllenge · cchallenge · chalelnge · chalenge · challegne · challeneg · challengge · challennge
- challenges ← cahllenges · cchallenges · chalelnges · chalenges · challegnes · challenegs · challengess · challengges
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "challenge" for "challenges" ever safe?
Which is more common, "challenge" or "challenges"?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "challenge" and "challenges" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "challenge" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "challenges" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #518,937 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "challenge" and "challenges" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "challenge vs Charlene". 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 #518,937 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.