Which to use
“lakh” is a num and “Lau” is a name - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #21,258
- “lakh” frequency rank
- #20,408
- “Lau” frequency rank
- 41666
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lakh | Lau |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | One hundred thousand (10⁵): 100,000, that is, with Indian digit grouping, 1,00,000. | A surname from Chinese. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set lakh and Lau apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: lakh is /lɑkʰ/ while Lau is /laʊ/. 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 name), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 41666, 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/. Lau is at rank #20,408, tagged as aname, pronounced /laʊ/.
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 41666, this pair ranks #256,186 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of lakh vs Lau
Shared letters: al. Private to "lakh": hk. Private to "Lau": u.
"lakh" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "Lau" · 3 letters · shape CVV
Known mistypes of this pair
- lakh ← alkh · lahk · lakhh · lakkh · lkah · llakh
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "lakh" and "Lau" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "lakh" or "Lau"?
Remembering lakh vs Lau
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a num, it's “lakh”; for a name, it's “Lau”.
- 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