growlsvsgrowthsWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#40,270
“growls” frequency rank
#39,339
“growths” frequency rank
79609
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature growls growths
Definition plural of growl plural of growth

Where the spellings diverge

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

6 ch
growls
7 ch
growths

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. growls (/ɡɹaʊlz/) and growths (/ɡɹoʊθs/) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 79609, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

growls is recorded at frequency rank #40,270, classified as anoun, pronounced /ɡɹaʊlz/. growths is at rank #39,339, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ɡɹoʊθs/.

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 79609, this pair ranks #21,682 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of growls vs growths

Shared letters: gorsw. Private to "growls": l. Private to "growths": ht.

"growls" · 6 letters · shape CCVCCC  ·  "growths" · 7 letters · shape CCVCCCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • growlsggrowls · gorwls · grolws · growlls · growlss · growsl · growwls · grrowls
  • growthsggrowths · gorwths · grotwhs · growhts · growthhs · growthss · growtsh · growtths

Frequency comparison

growls#40,270
growths#39,339

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "growls" and "growths" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/ɡɹaʊlz/ versus /ɡɹoʊθs/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "growls" or "growths"?
"growths" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #39,339 in our English list, against #40,270 for "growls". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering growls vs growths

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 “growls” 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