Which to use
“last” is an adjective and “lose” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #141
- “last” frequency rank
- #879
- “lose” frequency rank
- 1020
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | last | lose |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Final, ultimate, coming after all others of its kind. | To cease to have (something) in one's possession or capability. |
Where the eye mixes last and lose
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: last is /lɑːst/ while lose is /luːz/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 1020, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
last is recorded at frequency rank #141, classified as anadj, pronounced /lɑːst/. lose is at rank #879, tagged as averb, pronounced /luːz/.
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 1020, this pair ranks #528,290 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of last vs lose
Shared letters: ls. Private to "last": at. Private to "lose": eo.
"last" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "lose" · 4 letters · shape CVCV