glitchvsglitchesWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“glitch” and “glitches” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#16,032
“glitch” frequency rank
#23,844
“glitches” frequency rank
39876
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature glitch glitches
Definition A problem affecting function. plural of glitch

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set glitch and glitches apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
glitch
8 ch
glitches

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. glitch (/ˈɡlɪt͡ʃ/) and glitches (/ˈɡlɪt͡ʃɪz/) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “glitch” sits inside “glitches”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 39876, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

glitch is recorded at frequency rank #16,032, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈɡlɪt͡ʃ/. glitches is at rank #23,844, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈɡlɪt͡ʃɪz/.

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 39876, this pair ranks #272,680 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of glitch vs glitches

Shared letters: cghilt. Private to "glitch": -. Private to "glitches": es.

"glitch" · 6 letters · shape CCVCCC  ·  "glitches" · 8 letters · shape CCVCCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • glitchgglitch · giltch · glicth · glitcch · glitchh · glithc · glittch · gllitch
  • glitchesgglitches · giltches · glicthes · glitcches · glitcehs · glitchess · glitchhes · glitchse

Frequency comparison

glitch#16,032
glitches#23,844

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "glitch" and "glitches" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/ˈɡlɪt͡ʃ/ versus /ˈɡlɪt͡ʃɪz/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "glitch" or "glitches"?
"glitch" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #16,032 in our English list, against #23,844 for "glitches". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering glitch vs glitches

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “glitch” 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