Which to use
“four” is a num and “fourth” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #272
- “four” frequency rank
- #1,562
- “fourth” frequency rank
- 1834
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | four | fourth |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A numerical value equal to 4; the number after three and before five; two plus two. This many dots (••••) | The ordinal form of the number four. |
Where the eye mixes four and fourth
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between four and fourth
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: four is /foɹ/ while fourth is /fɔːθ/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “four” sits inside “fourth”, and the parts of speech differ too (num vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 1834, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
four is recorded at frequency rank #272, classified as anum, pronounced /foɹ/. fourth is at rank #1,562, tagged as anadj, pronounced /fɔːθ/.
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 1834, this pair ranks #526,527 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of four vs fourth
Shared letters: foru. Private to "four": -. Private to "fourth": ht.
"four" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "fourth" · 6 letters · shape CVVCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "four" for "fourth" ever safe?
Which is more common, "four" or "fourth"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "four" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "fourth" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #526,527 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "four" and "fourth" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "FOMO vs four". 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 #526,527 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.