Which to use
“gauze” and “graze” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #33,251
- “gauze” frequency rank
- #28,225
- “graze” frequency rank
- 61476
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | gauze | graze |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A thin fabric with a loose, open weave. | The act of grazing; a scratching or injuring lightly on passing. |
Where the eye mixes gauze and graze
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. gauze (CVVCV) and graze (CCVCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Look-alike desk: gauze vs graze
A purely visual mix-up. gauze (/ɡɔːz/) and graze (/ɡɹeɪz/) 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 61476, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
gauze is recorded at frequency rank #33,251, classified as anoun, pronounced /ɡɔːz/. graze is at rank #28,225, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ɡɹeɪz/.
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 61476, this pair ranks #94,028 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of gauze vs graze
Shared letters: aegz. Private to "gauze": u. Private to "graze": r.
"gauze" · 5 letters · shape CVVCV · "graze" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "gauze" and "graze" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "gauze" or "graze"?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "gauze" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "graze" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #94,028 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "gauze" and "graze" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "gare vs gauze". 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 #94,028 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.