Which to use
“karaoke” and “karate” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #16,507
- “karaoke” frequency rank
- #13,942
- “karate” frequency rank
- 30449
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | karaoke | karate |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A form of entertainment popular in clubs, at parties, etc, in which individual members of the public sing along to pre-recorded instrumental versions of popular songs, the lyrics of which are displayed for the singer on a screen in time with the music. | An Okinawan martial art involving primarily punching and kicking, but additionally, advanced throws, arm bars, grappling and all means of fighting. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set karaoke and karate apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
A purely visual mix-up. karaoke (/ˈkæ.ɹiˌəʊ.ki/) and karate (/kəˈɹɑː.ti/) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 30449, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
karaoke is recorded at frequency rank #16,507, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈkæ.ɹiˌəʊ.ki/. karate is at rank #13,942, tagged as anoun, pronounced /kəˈɹɑː.ti/.
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 30449, this pair ranks #354,471 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of karaoke vs karate
Shared letters: aekr. Private to "karaoke": o. Private to "karate": t.
"karaoke" · 7 letters · shape CVCVVCV · "karate" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "karaoke" and "karate" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "karaoke" or "karate"?
Remembering karaoke vs karate
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 “karaoke” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable