lakhvsLANWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: lakh is a num, LAN is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“lakh” is a num and “LAN” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#21,258
“lakh” frequency rank
#12,268
“LAN” frequency rank
33526
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature lakh LAN
Definition One hundred thousand (10⁵): 100,000, that is, with Indian digit grouping, 1,00,000. Acronym of local area network.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set lakh and LAN apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
lakh
3 ch
LAN

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: lakh is /lɑkʰ/ while LAN is /læn/. 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 (num vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33526, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

lakh is recorded at frequency rank #21,258, classified as anum, pronounced /lɑkʰ/. LAN is at rank #12,268, tagged as anoun, pronounced /læn/.

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 33526, this pair ranks #328,667 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of lakh vs LAN

Shared letters: al. Private to "lakh": hk. Private to "LAN": n.

"lakh" · 4 letters · shape CVCC  ·  "LAN" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • lakhalkh · lahk · lakhh · lakkh · lkah · llakh

Frequency comparison

lakh#21,258
LAN#12,268

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "lakh" and "LAN" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "lakh" is a num and "LAN" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "lakh" or "LAN"?
"LAN" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #12,268 in our English list, against #21,258 for "lakh". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering lakh vs LAN

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list