Which to use
“gold” and “golds” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #692
- “gold” frequency rank
- #24,460
- “golds” frequency rank
- 25152
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | gold | golds |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A heavy yellow elemental metal of great value, with atomic number 79 and symbol Au. | plural of gold |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set gold and golds apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
A purely visual mix-up. gold (/ɡəʊld/) and golds (/ɡəʊldz/) 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 1 extra letter(s) - “gold” sits inside “golds”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 25152, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
gold is recorded at frequency rank #692, classified as anoun, pronounced /ɡəʊld/. golds is at rank #24,460, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ɡəʊldz/.
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 25152, this pair ranks #396,546 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of gold vs golds
Shared letters: dglo. Private to "gold": -. Private to "golds": s.
"gold" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "golds" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "gold" and "golds" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "gold" or "golds"?
Remembering gold vs golds
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 “gold” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable