Which to use
“fearsome” is an adjective and “foursome” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #27,145
- “fearsome” frequency rank
- #39,326
- “foursome” frequency rank
- 66471
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fearsome | foursome |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | frightening, especially in appearance. | A group of four, a quartet or a game (such as golf) played by four players, especially by two teams of two. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set fearsome and foursome apart are highlighted. They share 6 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: fearsome is /ˈfɪɹsəm/ while foursome is /ˈfɔɹsəm/. 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 (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 66471, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fearsome is recorded at frequency rank #27,145, classified as anadj, pronounced /ˈfɪɹsəm/. foursome is at rank #39,326, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈfɔɹsəm/.
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 66471, this pair ranks #67,822 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of fearsome vs foursome
Shared letters: efmors. Private to "fearsome": a. Private to "foursome": u.
"fearsome" · 8 letters · shape CVVCCVCV · "foursome" · 8 letters · shape CVVCCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "fearsome" and "foursome" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "fearsome" or "foursome"?
Remembering fearsome vs foursome
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “fearsome”; for a noun, it's “foursome”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “fearsome” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable