Which to use
“decade” is a noun and “decays” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,886
- “decade” frequency rank
- #42,595
- “decays” frequency rank
- 45481
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | decade | decays |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A group, set, or series of ten , particularly | third-person singular simple present indicative of decay |
Where the eye mixes decade and decays
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses decade with decays
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: decade is /ˈdɛkeɪd/ while decays is /dɪˈkeɪz/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 45481, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
decade is recorded at frequency rank #2,886, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈdɛkeɪd/. decays is at rank #42,595, tagged as averb, pronounced /dɪˈkeɪz/.
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 45481, this pair ranks #220,887 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of decade vs decays
Shared letters: acde. Private to "decade": -. Private to "decays": sy.
"decade" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV · "decays" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "decade" and "decays" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "decade" or "decays"?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "decade" and "decays" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "decade" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "decays" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #220,887 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "decade" and "decays" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "decays vs decry". 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 #220,887 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.