Which to use
“lapis” and “leaps” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #38,012
- “lapis” frequency rank
- #18,119
- “leaps” frequency rank
- 56131
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lapis | leaps |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Ellipsis of lapis lazuli. | plural of leap |
Where the eye mixes lapis and leaps
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: lapis vs leaps
A purely visual mix-up. lapis (/ˈlæpɪs/) and leaps (/liːps/) 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 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 56131, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
lapis is recorded at frequency rank #38,012, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈlæpɪs/. leaps is at rank #18,119, tagged as anoun, pronounced /liːps/.
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 56131, this pair ranks #128,500 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of lapis vs leaps
Shared letters: alps. Private to "lapis": i. Private to "leaps": e.
"lapis" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "leaps" · 5 letters · shape CVVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "lapis" for "leaps" ever safe?
Which is more common, "lapis" or "leaps"?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "lapis" and "leaps" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "lapis" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "leaps" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #128,500 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "lapis" and "leaps" 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 #128,500 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.