Which to use
“lapses” and “lasts” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #32,056
- “lapses” frequency rank
- #8,309
- “lasts” frequency rank
- 40365
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lapses | lasts |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of lapse | plural of last |
Where the eye mixes lapses and lasts
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between lapses and lasts
A purely visual mix-up. lapses (/ˈlæpsɪz/) and lasts (/lɑːsts/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 40365, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
lapses is recorded at frequency rank #32,056, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈlæpsɪz/. lasts is at rank #8,309, tagged as anoun, pronounced /lɑːsts/.
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 40365, this pair ranks #268,244 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of lapses vs lasts
Shared letters: als. Private to "lapses": ep. Private to "lasts": t.
"lapses" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "lasts" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "lapses" and "lasts" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "lapses" or "lasts"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "lapses" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "lasts" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #268,244 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "lapses" and "lasts" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "lances vs lapses". 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 #268,244 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.