Which to use
“last” and “les” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #141
- “last” frequency rank
- #6,067
- “les” frequency rank
- 6208
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | last | les |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Final, ultimate, coming after all others of its kind. | Clipping of lesbian. |
Where the eye mixes last and les
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: last vs les
A purely visual mix-up. last (/lɑːst/) and les (/lɛz/) 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 6208, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
last is recorded at frequency rank #141, classified as anadj, pronounced /lɑːst/. les is at rank #6,067, tagged as anadj, pronounced /lɛz/.
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 6208, this pair ranks #512,323 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of last vs les
Shared letters: ls. Private to "last": at. Private to "les": e.
"last" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "les" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- last ← alst · lasst · lastt · lats · llast
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "last" and "les" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "last" or "les"?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "last" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "les" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #512,323 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "last" and "les" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "les vs LSC". 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 #512,323 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.