Which to use
“doubly” is an adverb and “doubts” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #23,248
- “doubly” frequency rank
- #7,677
- “doubts” frequency rank
- 30925
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | doubly | doubts |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | In a double manner; with twice the severity or degree. | plural of doubt |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set doubly and doubts apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: doubly is /ˈdʌb.li/ while doubts is /daʊts/. 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 (adverb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 30925, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
doubly is recorded at frequency rank #23,248, classified as anadv, pronounced /ˈdʌb.li/. doubts is at rank #7,677, tagged as anoun, pronounced /daʊts/.
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 30925, this pair ranks #350,465 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of doubly vs doubts
Shared letters: bdou. Private to "doubly": ly. Private to "doubts": st.
"doubly" · 6 letters · shape CVVCCV · "doubts" · 6 letters · shape CVVCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "doubly" and "doubts" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "doubly" or "doubts"?
Remembering doubly vs doubts
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need an adverb, it's “doubly”; for a noun, it's “doubts”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “doubly” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable