Which to use
“holes” is a noun and “hove” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #3,949
- “holes” frequency rank
- #27,871
- “hove” frequency rank
- 31820
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | holes | hove |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of hole | To remain suspended in air, water etc.; to float, to hover. |
Where the eye mixes holes and hove
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: holes is /həʊlz/ while hove is /həʊv/. 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 (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 31820, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
holes is recorded at frequency rank #3,949, classified as anoun, pronounced /həʊlz/. hove is at rank #27,871, tagged as averb, pronounced /həʊv/.
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 31820, this pair ranks #342,917 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of holes vs hove
Shared letters: eho. Private to "holes": ls. Private to "hove": v.
"holes" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "hove" · 4 letters · shape CVCV