freesvsfreezesWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: frees is a verb, freezes is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“frees” is a verb and “freezes” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#22,978
“frees” frequency rank
#19,845
“freezes” frequency rank
42823
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature frees freezes
Definition third-person singular simple present indicative of free plural of freeze

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set frees and freezes apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
frees
7 ch
freezes

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

frees and freezes form a confusable pair in the English index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 2 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 42823, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

frees is recorded at frequency rank #22,978, classified as averb, pronounced /fɹiːz/. freezes is at rank #19,845, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈfɹiːzɪz/.

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 42823, this pair ranks #245,779 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Frequency comparison

frees#22,978
freezes#19,845

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "frees" and "freezes" be used interchangeably?
No, "frees" and "freezes" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering frees vs freezes

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “frees”; for a noun, it's “freezes”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “frees” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list