Which to use
“hod” is a verb and “hole” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #49,395
- “hod” frequency rank
- #2,206
- “hole” frequency rank
- 51601
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | hod | hole |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To bob up and down on horseback, as an inexperienced rider may do; to jog. | A hollow place or cavity; an excavation; a pit; a dent; a depression; a fissure. |
Where the eye mixes hod and hole
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. hod runs 3 letters (CVC) against hole's 4 (CVCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses hod with hole
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: hod is /hɒd/ while hole is /həʊl/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 51601, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
hod is recorded at frequency rank #49,395, classified as averb, pronounced /hɒd/. hole is at rank #2,206, tagged as anoun, pronounced /həʊl/.
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 51601, this pair ranks #164,096 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of hod vs hole
Shared letters: ho. Private to "hod": d. Private to "hole": el.
"hod" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "hole" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- hole ← hhole · hloe · hoel · holle · ohle
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "hod" for "hole" ever safe?
Which is more common, "hod" or "hole"?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "hod" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "hole" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #164,096 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "hod" and "hole" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "hod vs hoke". 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 #164,096 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.