Which to use
“cometh” and “compete” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #34,439
- “cometh” frequency rank
- #3,678
- “compete” frequency rank
- 38117
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cometh | compete |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | third-person singular simple present indicative of come | To be in battle or in a rivalry with another for the same thing, position, or reward; to contend. |
Where the eye mixes cometh and compete
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between cometh and compete
A purely visual mix-up. cometh (/ˈkʌm.əθ/) and compete (/kəmˈpiːt/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 38117, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cometh is recorded at frequency rank #34,439, classified as averb, pronounced /ˈkʌm.əθ/. compete is at rank #3,678, tagged as averb, pronounced /kəmˈpiːt/.
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 38117, this pair ranks #288,673 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of cometh vs compete
Shared letters: cemot. Private to "cometh": h. Private to "compete": p.
"cometh" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC · "compete" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "cometh" and "compete" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "cometh" or "compete"?
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 "cometh" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "compete" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #288,673 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "cometh" and "compete" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "cometh vs covet". 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 #288,673 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.