Which to use
“keys” and “kids” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,699
- “keys” frequency rank
- #530
- “kids” frequency rank
- 4229
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | keys | kids |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of key | plural of kid |
Where the eye mixes keys and kids
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
A purely visual mix-up. keys (/kiːz/) and kids (/kɪdz/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 4229, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
keys is recorded at frequency rank #3,699, classified as anoun, pronounced /kiːz/. kids is at rank #530, tagged as anoun, pronounced /kɪdz/.
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 4229, this pair ranks #519,580 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of keys vs kids
Shared letters: ks. Private to "keys": ey. Private to "kids": di.
"keys" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "kids" · 4 letters · shape CVCC