Which to use
“combed” is an adjective and “combs” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #31,481
- “combed” frequency rank
- #23,210
- “combs” frequency rank
- 54691
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | combed | combs |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Arranged or groomed with a comb. | plural of comb |
Letter map: combed vs combs
Shared letters muted; letters that set combed and combs apart highlighted. Shared run: 4.
Role in the sentence - combed and combs
Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: combed is anadjective and combsanoun. On the page they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 54691, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
combed is recorded at frequency rank #31,481, classified as anadj. combs is at rank #23,210, tagged as anoun, pronounced /kəʊmz/.
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 54691, this pair ranks #139,140 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of combed vs combs
Shared letters: bcmo. Private to "combed": de. Private to "combs": s.
"combed" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "combs" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "combed" for "combs" ever safe?
In ordinary English text, does "combed" or "combs" show up more?
Useful next steps
You've compared "combed" and "combs". Here's where to go from here.
- Full dictionary entry for "combed" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "combs" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #139,140 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "combed" and "combs" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "coaxed vs combed". 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 #139,140 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.