Which to use
“grate” and “grays” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #23,284
- “grate” frequency rank
- #35,740
- “grays” frequency rank
- 59024
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | grate | grays |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A horizontal metal grill through which liquid, ash, or small objects can fall, while larger objects cannot. | plural of gray |
Where the eye mixes grate and grays
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. grate (CCVCV) and grays (CCVVC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Look-alike desk: grate vs grays
A purely visual mix-up. grate (/ɡɹeɪt/) and grays (/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 59024, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
grate is recorded at frequency rank #23,284, classified as anoun, pronounced /ɡɹeɪt/. grays is at rank #35,740, 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 59024, this pair ranks #108,790 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of grate vs grays
Shared letters: agr. Private to "grate": et. Private to "grays": sy.
"grate" · 5 letters · shape CCVCV · "grays" · 5 letters · shape CCVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "grate" for "grays" ever safe?
In ordinary English text, does "grate" or "grays" show up more?
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 "grate" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "grays" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #108,790 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "grate" and "grays" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "grasse vs grays". 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 #108,790 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.