Which to use
“cons” and “cox” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #10,183
- “cons” frequency rank
- #7,783
- “cox” frequency rank
- 17966
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cons | cox |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A data structure in Lisp that is a pair of pointers, car and cdr, used mainly for lists. | A coxswain of a boat, especially of a racing crew. |
Where the eye mixes cons and cox
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: cons vs cox
A purely visual mix-up. cons (/ˈkɑnz/) and cox (/kɒks/) 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 17966, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cons is recorded at frequency rank #10,183, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈkɑnz/. cox is at rank #7,783, tagged as anoun, pronounced /kɒks/.
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 17966, this pair ranks #448,023 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of cons vs cox
Shared letters: co. Private to "cons": ns. Private to "cox": x.
"cons" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "cox" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- cons ← ccons · cnos · conns · conss · cosn · ocns
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "cons" and "cox" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "cons" vs "cox" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "cons" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "cox" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #448,023 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "cons" and "cox" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "cons vs cuny". 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 #448,023 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.