Which to use
“contraption” and “contrition” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #36,090
- “contraption” frequency rank
- #45,859
- “contrition” frequency rank
- 81949
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | contraption | contrition |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A machine that is complicated and precarious. | The state of being contrite; sincere penitence or remorse. |
Where the eye mixes contraption and contrition
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: contraption vs contrition
A purely visual mix-up. contraption (/kənˈtɹæp.ʃən/) and contrition (/kənˈtɹɪʃən/) 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 81949, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
contraption is recorded at frequency rank #36,090, classified as anoun, pronounced /kənˈtɹæp.ʃən/. contrition is at rank #45,859, tagged as anoun, pronounced /kənˈtɹɪʃən/.
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 81949, this pair ranks #16,649 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of contraption vs contrition
Shared letters: cinort. Private to "contraption": ap. Private to "contrition": -.
"contraption" · 11 letters · shape CVCCCVCCVVC · "contrition" · 10 letters · shape CVCCCVCVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- contraption ← ccontraption · cnotraption · conntraption · conrtaption · contarption · contrapiton · contrapption · contrapsion
- contrition ← ccontrition · cnotrition · conntrition · conrtition · contirtion · contriiton · contrision · contritino
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "contraption" for "contrition" ever safe?
In ordinary English text, does "contraption" or "contrition" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "contraption" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "contrition" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #16,649 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "contraption" and "contrition" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "constriction vs contrition". 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 #16,649 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.