Which to use
“cites” and “cubes” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #12,742
- “cites” frequency rank
- #16,446
- “cubes” frequency rank
- 29188
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cites | cubes |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of cite | plural of cube |
Where the eye mixes cites and cubes
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between cites and cubes
A purely visual mix-up. cites (/saɪts/) and cubes (/kjuːbz/) 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 29188, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cites is recorded at frequency rank #12,742, classified as anoun, pronounced /saɪts/. cubes is at rank #16,446, tagged as anoun, pronounced /kjuːbz/.
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 29188, this pair ranks #365,093 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of cites vs cubes
Shared letters: ces. Private to "cites": it. Private to "cubes": bu.
"cites" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "cubes" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "cites" for "cubes" ever safe?
Frequency check: "cites" vs "cubes" - which ranks higher?
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 "cites" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "cubes" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #365,093 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "cites" and "cubes" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "cubby vs cubes". 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 #365,093 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.