index vs inked, What's the Difference?

Which to use

“index” is a noun and “inked” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#2,628
“index” frequency rank: #26,130
“inked” frequency rank: 28758
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	index	inked
Definition	An alphabetical listing of items and their location.	Having a tattoo or tattoos.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set index and inked apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch

index

5 ch

inked

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: index is anoun and inkedanadjective. On the page they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 28758, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

index is recorded at frequency rank #2,628, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈɪndɛks/. inked is at rank #26,130, tagged as anadj.

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 28758, this pair ranks #368,556 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of index vs inked

Shared letters: dein. Private to "index": x. Private to "inked": k.

"index" · 5 letters · shape VCCVC · "inked" · 5 letters · shape VCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

index ← idnex · inddex · indexx · indxe · inedx · inndex · nidex
inked ← ikned · inekd · inkde · inkedd · inkked · innked · niked

Frequency comparison

index#2,628

inked#26,130

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "index" and "inked" be used interchangeably?

No - they are not even the same part of speech. "index" is a noun and "inked" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.

Which is more common, "index" or "inked"?

"index" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #2,628 in our English list, against #26,130 for "inked". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering index vs inked

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “index”; for an adjective, it's “inked”.
See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “index” entry
Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable