Which to use
“lash” is a noun and “lay” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #17,657
- “lash” frequency rank
- #2,302
- “lay” frequency rank
- 19959
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lash | lay |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | The thong or braided cord of a whip, with which the blow is given. | To place down in a position of rest, or in a horizontal position. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set lash and lay apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
lash and lay form a confusable pair in the English index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 19959, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
lash is recorded at frequency rank #17,657, classified as anoun, pronounced /læʃ/. lay is at rank #2,302, tagged as averb, pronounced /leɪ/.
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 19959, this pair ranks #434,507 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "lash" and "lay" be used interchangeably?
Remembering lash vs lay
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “lash”; for a verb, it's “lay”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “lash” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable