Which to use
“clams” and “clank” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #24,408
- “clams” frequency rank
- #43,569
- “clank” frequency rank
- 67977
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | clams | clank |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of clam | A loud, hard sound of metal hitting metal. |
Where the eye mixes clams and clank
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses clams with clank
A purely visual mix-up. clams (/klæmz/) and clank (/ˈklæŋk/) 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 67977, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
clams is recorded at frequency rank #24,408, classified as anoun, pronounced /klæmz/. clank is at rank #43,569, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈklæŋk/.
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 67977, this pair ranks #60,952 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of clams vs clank
Shared letters: acl. Private to "clams": ms. Private to "clank": kn.
"clams" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC · "clank" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "clams" and "clank" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "clams" vs "clank" - 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 "clams" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "clank" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #60,952 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "clams" and "clank" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "clack vs clank". 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 #60,952 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.