dames vs dass, What's the Difference?

Which to use

“dames” is a noun and “dass” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#29,988
“dames” frequency rank: #42,593
“dass” frequency rank: 72581
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	dames	dass
Definition	plural of dame	To dare.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set dames and dass apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch

dames

4 ch

dass

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: dames is /deɪmz/ while dass is /dæs/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 72581, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

dames is recorded at frequency rank #29,988, classified as anoun, pronounced /deɪmz/. dass is at rank #42,593, tagged as averb, pronounced /dæs/.

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 72581, this pair ranks #42,558 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of dames vs dass

Shared letters: ads. Private to "dames": em. Private to "dass": -.

"dames" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "dass" · 4 letters · shape CVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

dames ← admes · daems · damess · dammes · damse · ddames · dmaes
dass ← adss · ddass · dsas

Frequency comparison

dames#29,988

dass#42,593

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "dames" and "dass" be used interchangeably?

No - they are not even the same part of speech. "dames" is a noun and "dass" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.

Which is more common, "dames" or "dass"?

"dames" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #29,988 in our English list, against #42,593 for "dass". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering dames vs dass

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “dames”; for a verb, it's “dass”.
See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “dames” entry
Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable