Which to use
“fifth” and “filthy” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,719
- “fifth” frequency rank
- #9,608
- “filthy” frequency rank
- 11327
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fifth | filthy |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | The ordinal form of the number five. | Covered with filth; very dirty. |
Where the eye mixes fifth and filthy
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: fifth vs filthy
A purely visual mix-up. fifth (/fɪfθ/) and filthy (/ˈfɪlθi/) 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 11327, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fifth is recorded at frequency rank #1,719, classified as anadj, pronounced /fɪfθ/. filthy is at rank #9,608, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ˈfɪlθi/.
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 11327, this pair ranks #487,662 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of fifth vs filthy
Shared letters: fhit. Private to "fifth": -. Private to "filthy": ly.
"fifth" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC · "filthy" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "fifth" for "filthy" ever safe?
Frequency check: "fifth" vs "filthy" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "fifth" and "filthy" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "fifth" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "filthy" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #487,662 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "fifth" and "filthy" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "filthy vs frothy". 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 #487,662 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.