Which to use
“lambs” and “lapis” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #21,561
- “lambs” frequency rank
- #38,012
- “lapis” frequency rank
- 59573
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lambs | lapis |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of lamb | Ellipsis of lapis lazuli. |
Where the eye mixes lambs and lapis
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between lambs and lapis
A purely visual mix-up. lambs (/læmz/) and lapis (/ˈlæpɪs/) 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 59573, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
lambs is recorded at frequency rank #21,561, classified as anoun, pronounced /læmz/. lapis is at rank #38,012, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈlæpɪs/.
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 59573, this pair ranks #105,349 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of lambs vs lapis
Shared letters: als. Private to "lambs": bm. Private to "lapis": ip.
"lambs" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC · "lapis" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "lambs" and "lapis" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "lambs" or "lapis"?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "lambs" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "lapis" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #105,349 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "lambs" and "lapis" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "lapis vs Levis". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #105,349 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.