Which to use
“cuckold” and “cuckoo” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #34,847
- “cuckold” frequency rank
- #24,132
- “cuckoo” frequency rank
- 58979
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | cuckold | cuckoo |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A man married to an adulterous spouse, especially when he is unaware or unaccepting of the fact. | Any of various birds, of the family Cuculidae within the order Cuculiformes, famous for laying its eggs in the nests of other species; but especially a common cuckoo (Cuculus canorus), that has a characteristic two-note call. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set cuckold and cuckoo apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
cuckold and cuckoo form a confusable pair in the English index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 58979, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
cuckold is recorded at frequency rank #34,847, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈkʌ.kəʊld/. cuckoo is at rank #24,132, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈkʊkuː/.
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 58979, this pair ranks #109,046 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "cuckold" and "cuckoo" be used interchangeably?
Remembering cuckold vs cuckoo
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “cuckold” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable