Which to use
“Clare” and “Clarke” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #12,020
- “Clare” frequency rank
- #6,551
- “Clarke” frequency rank
- 18571
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Clare | Clarke |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A county of Ireland. | An English surname originating as an occupation, variant of Clark. |
Letter map: Clare vs Clarke
Shared letters muted; letters that set Clare and Clarke apart highlighted. Shared run: 5.
Corpus notes: Clare and Clarke
Clare and Clarke are indexed as a confusable English pair. We have no recorded pronunciation or part of speech for both members, so the spelling overlap is what we can show you: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 18571, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Clare is recorded at frequency rank #12,020, classified as aname, pronounced /klɛə/. Clarke is at rank #6,551, tagged as aname.
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 18571, this pair ranks #444,006 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of Clare vs Clarke
Shared letters: acelr. Private to "Clare": -. Private to "Clarke": k.
"Clare" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV · "Clarke" · 6 letters · shape CCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Clare" for "Clarke" ever safe?
Frequency check: "Clare" vs "Clarke" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pair "Clare" vs "Clarke" is on the table, pick a follow-up below.
- Full dictionary entry for "Clare" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "Clarke" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #444,006 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Clare" and "Clarke" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Clare vs cleve". 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 #444,006 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.