Which to use
“hoard” and “horde” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #21,540
- “hoard” frequency rank
- #21,541
- “horde” frequency rank
- 43081
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | hoard | horde |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A hidden supply or fund. | A wandering troop or gang; especially, a clan or tribe of a nomadic people (originally Tatars) migrating from place to place for the sake of pasturage, plunder, etc.; a predatory multitude. |
Where the eye mixes hoard and horde
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses hoard with horde
A purely visual mix-up. hoard (/hɔɹd/) and horde (/hɔːd/) 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 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 43081, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
hoard is recorded at frequency rank #21,540, classified as anoun, pronounced /hɔɹd/. horde is at rank #21,541, tagged as anoun, pronounced /hɔːd/.
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 43081, this pair ranks #243,401 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of hoard vs horde
Shared letters: dhor. Private to "hoard": a. Private to "horde": e.
"hoard" · 5 letters · shape CVVCC · "horde" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "hoard" for "horde" ever safe?
Which is more common, "hoard" or "horde"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "hoard" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "horde" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #243,401 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "hoard" and "horde" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "hoke vs horde". 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 #243,401 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.