Which to use
“clasp” is a noun and “clasped” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #25,321
- “clasp” frequency rank
- #48,142
- “clasped” frequency rank
- 73463
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | clasp | clasped |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A device with interlocking parts used for fastening things together, such as a fastener or a holder. | simple past and past participle of clasp |
Where the eye mixes clasp and clasped
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. clasp runs 5 letters (CCVCC) against clasped's 7 (CCVCCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses clasp with clasped
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: clasp is /klæsp/ while clasped is /klæspt/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “clasp” sits inside “clasped”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 73463, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
clasp is recorded at frequency rank #25,321, classified as anoun, pronounced /klæsp/. clasped is at rank #48,142, tagged as averb, pronounced /klæspt/.
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 73463, this pair ranks #39,537 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of clasp vs clasped
Shared letters: aclps. Private to "clasp": -. Private to "clasped": de.
"clasp" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC · "clasped" · 7 letters · shape CCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "clasp" and "clasped" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "clasp" or "clasped"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "clasp" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "clasped" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #39,537 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "clasp" and "clasped" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "cased vs clasped". 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 #39,537 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.