Which to use
“lathe” and “loathe” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #32,475
- “lathe” frequency rank
- #25,122
- “loathe” frequency rank
- 57597
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lathe | loathe |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To invite; bid; ask. | To detest, hate, or revile (someone or something). |
Where the eye mixes lathe and loathe
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. lathe runs 5 letters (CVCCV) against loathe's 6 (CVVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Look-alike desk: lathe vs loathe
A purely visual mix-up. lathe (/leɪð/) and loathe (/ˈləʊð/) 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 57597, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
lathe is recorded at frequency rank #32,475, classified as averb, pronounced /leɪð/. loathe is at rank #25,122, tagged as averb, pronounced /ˈləʊð/.
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 57597, this pair ranks #118,262 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of lathe vs loathe
Shared letters: aehlt. Private to "lathe": -. Private to "loathe": o.
"lathe" · 5 letters · shape CVCCV · "loathe" · 6 letters · shape CVVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "lathe" and "loathe" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "lathe" or "loathe"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "lathe" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "loathe" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #118,262 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "lathe" and "loathe" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "latches vs lathe". 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 #118,262 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.