Which to use
“choose” and “close” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,296
- “choose” frequency rank
- #431
- “close” frequency rank
- 1727
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | choose | close |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To pick; to make the choice of; to select. | To remove or block an opening, gap or passage through. |
Where the eye mixes choose and close
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between choose and close
A purely visual mix-up. choose (/t͡ʃuːz/) and close (/kləʊz/) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 1727, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
choose is recorded at frequency rank #1,296, classified as averb, pronounced /t͡ʃuːz/. close is at rank #431, tagged as averb, pronounced /kləʊz/.
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 1727, this pair ranks #526,797 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of choose vs close
Shared letters: ceos. Private to "choose": h. Private to "close": l.
"choose" · 6 letters · shape CCVVCV · "close" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "choose" and "close" be used interchangeably?
In ordinary English text, does "choose" or "close" show up more?
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 "choose" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "close" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #526,797 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "choose" and "close" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "caboose vs choose". 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 #526,797 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.