kindle vs kindred, What's the Difference?

Which to use

“kindle” is a verb and “kindred” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#9,490
“kindle” frequency rank: #23,884
“kindred” frequency rank: 33374
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	kindle	kindred
Definition	To start (a fire) or light (a torch, a match, coals, etc.).	Distant and close relatives, collectively; kin.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set kindle and kindred apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch

kindle

7 ch

kindred

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: kindle is /ˈkɪn.dəl/ while kindred is /ˈkɪndɹɪd/. 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 (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33374, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

kindle is recorded at frequency rank #9,490, classified as averb, pronounced /ˈkɪn.dəl/. kindred is at rank #23,884, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈkɪndɹɪd/.

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 33374, this pair ranks #330,005 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of kindle vs kindred

Shared letters: deikn. Private to "kindle": l. Private to "kindred": r.

"kindle" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV · "kindred" · 7 letters · shape CVCCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

kindle ← ikndle · kidnle · kinddle · kindel · kindlle · kinlde · kinndle · kkindle
kindred ← ikndred · kidnred · kinddred · kinderd · kindrde · kindredd · kindrred · kinndred

Frequency comparison

kindle#9,490

kindred#23,884

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "kindle" and "kindred" be used interchangeably?

No - they are not even the same part of speech. "kindle" is a verb and "kindred" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.

Which is more common, "kindle" or "kindred"?

"kindle" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #9,490 in our English list, against #23,884 for "kindred". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering kindle vs kindred

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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