Which to use
“ide” and “ides” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #24,195
- “ide” frequency rank
- #44,856
- “ides” frequency rank
- 69051
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ide | ides |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A freshwater fish of the family Cyprinidae, found across northern Europe and Asia, especially Leuciscus idus. | The notional full-moon day of a Roman month, occurring on the 15th day of the four original 31-day months (March, May, Quintilis or July, and October) and on the 13th day of all other months. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set ide and ides apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
A purely visual mix-up. ide (/aɪd/) and ides (/aɪdz/) 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 extra letter(s) - “ide” sits inside “ides”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 69051, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ide is recorded at frequency rank #24,195, classified as anoun, pronounced /aɪd/. ides is at rank #44,856, tagged as anoun, pronounced /aɪdz/.
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 69051, this pair ranks #56,183 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of ide vs ides
Shared letters: dei. Private to "ide": -. Private to "ides": s.
"ide" · 3 letters · shape VCV · "ides" · 4 letters · shape VCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- ides ← iddes · idess · idse · ieds
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "ide" and "ides" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "ide" or "ides"?
Remembering ide vs ides
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 “ide” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable