Which to use
“fleas” and “fleck” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #25,061
- “fleas” frequency rank
- #48,748
- “fleck” frequency rank
- 73809
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fleas | fleck |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of flea | A flake. |
Where the eye mixes fleas and fleck
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between fleas and fleck
A purely visual mix-up. fleas (/ˈfliːz/) and fleck (/flɛk/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 73809, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fleas is recorded at frequency rank #25,061, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈfliːz/. fleck is at rank #48,748, tagged as anoun, pronounced /flɛk/.
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 73809, this pair ranks #38,357 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of fleas vs fleck
Shared letters: efl. Private to "fleas": as. Private to "fleck": ck.
"fleas" · 5 letters · shape CCVVC · "fleck" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "fleas" and "fleck" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "fleas" vs "fleck" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "fleas" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "fleck" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #38,357 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "fleas" and "fleck" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "fleck vs frock". 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 #38,357 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.