Close or clothes?
close is a verb meaning “To move a thing, or part of a thing, nearer to another so that the gap or…”; clothes is a noun meaning “Items of clothing; apparel”. Use close as a verb and clothes as a noun (close is also a noun: “An end or conclusion”). In written English (wordfreq, 2021 data) close is about 4.4 times as common as clothes.
What is the difference between close and clothes?
| close | clothes | |
|---|---|---|
| Part of speech | verb, noun, adjective, adverb | noun, verb |
| Meaning | To move a thing, or part of a thing, nearer to another so that the gap or opening between the two is removed To obstruct or block An end or conclusion | Items of clothing; apparel The covering of a bed; bedclothes |
| Example | Close the door behind you when you leave | suit of clothes |
| Forms | closes, closing, closed | none |
| Pronunciation | /ˈkləʊz/ [ˈkʰl̥əʊ̯z] /ˈklɵʊ̯z/ | /kləʊ(ð)z/ /kloʊ(ð)z/ /klo(ð)z/ |
| In writing | 229 times per million words | 52 times per million words |
Sources: close and clothes in the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Every current meaning of close and clothes
close
- 1
To move a thing, or part of a thing, nearer to another so that the gap or opening between the two is removed
Close the door behind you when you leave
- 2
An end or conclusion
We owe them our thanks for bringing the project to a successful close
- 3
At little distance; near in space or time
Is your house close?
- 4
So as to leave or create little distance or space between objects
The car behind was following too close and could not brake in time
- 5
UKA street that ends in a dead end
- 6
To obstruct or block
They closed the road for the festival
- 7
The manner of shutting; the union of parts; junction
- 8
Almost, but not quite (getting to an answer, goal, or other state); near
No, but you were close
clothes
- 1
Items of clothing; apparel
suit of clothes
- 2
The covering of a bed; bedclothes
- 3
Laundry (hung on a clothesline)
Source: the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); obsolete, archaic, dialect and rare senses left out.
Which is more common, close or clothes?
close appears 229 times per million words; clothes 52 times per million words.
close 229 times per million wordsclothes 52 times per million words
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).