Which to use
“cross” and “crusts” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,073
- “cross” frequency rank
- #45,868
- “crusts” frequency rank
- 46941
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cross | crusts |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A geometrical figure consisting of two straight lines or bars intersecting each other such that at least one of them is bisected by the other. | plural of crust |
Where the eye mixes cross and crusts
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. cross runs 5 letters (CCVCC) against crusts's 6 (CCVCCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses cross with crusts
A purely visual mix-up. cross (/kɹɒs/) and crusts (/kɹʌsts/) 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 46941, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cross is recorded at frequency rank #1,073, classified as anoun, pronounced /kɹɒs/. crusts is at rank #45,868, tagged as anoun, pronounced /kɹʌsts/.
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 46941, this pair ranks #207,064 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of cross vs crusts
Shared letters: crs. Private to "cross": o. Private to "crusts": tu.
"cross" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC · "crusts" · 6 letters · shape CCVCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "cross" and "crusts" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "cross" vs "crusts" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "cross" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "crusts" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #207,064 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "cross" and "crusts" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "crusted vs crusts". 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 #207,064 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.