Which to use
“hammock” and “hemlock” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #24,182
- “hammock” frequency rank
- #34,521
- “hemlock” frequency rank
- 58703
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | hammock | hemlock |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A swinging couch or bed, usually made of netting or canvas about six feet (1.8 meters) wide, suspended by clews or cords at the ends. | Any of the poisonous umbelliferous plants, of the genera |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set hammock and hemlock apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
A purely visual mix-up. hammock (/ˈhæmək/) and hemlock (/ˈhɛmˌlɒk/) 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 58703, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
hammock is recorded at frequency rank #24,182, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈhæmək/. hemlock is at rank #34,521, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈhɛmˌlɒk/.
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 58703, this pair ranks #110,852 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of hammock vs hemlock
Shared letters: chkmo. Private to "hammock": a. Private to "hemlock": el.
"hammock" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC · "hemlock" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "hammock" and "hemlock" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "hammock" or "hemlock"?
Remembering hammock vs hemlock
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 “hammock” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable