Which to use
“ewe” and “exes” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #37,448
- “ewe” frequency rank
- #26,415
- “exes” frequency rank
- 63863
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ewe | exes |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A female sheep, as opposed to a ram. | plural of ex |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set ewe and exes apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
A purely visual mix-up. ewe (/juː/) and exes (/ˈɛksəz/) 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 63863, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ewe is recorded at frequency rank #37,448, classified as anoun, pronounced /juː/. exes is at rank #26,415, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈɛksəz/.
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 63863, this pair ranks #80,698 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of ewe vs exes
Shared letters: e. Private to "ewe": w. Private to "exes": sx.
"ewe" · 3 letters · shape VCV · "exes" · 4 letters · shape VCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- exes ← eexs · exess · exse · exxes · xees
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "ewe" and "exes" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "ewe" or "exes"?
Remembering ewe vs exes
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 “ewe” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable