Which to use
“leaking” and “leaping” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #11,243
- “leaking” frequency rank
- #21,562
- “leaping” frequency rank
- 32805
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | leaking | leaping |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | present participle and gerund of leak | present participle and gerund of leap |
Where the eye mixes leaking and leaping
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: leaking vs leaping
A purely visual mix-up. leaking (/ˈliːkɪŋ/) and leaping (/ˈliːpɪŋ/) 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 a single letter - k in “leaking” becomes p in “leaping”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32805, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
leaking is recorded at frequency rank #11,243, classified as averb, pronounced /ˈliːkɪŋ/. leaping is at rank #21,562, tagged as averb, pronounced /ˈliːpɪŋ/.
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 32805, this pair ranks #334,778 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of leaking vs leaping
Shared letters: aegiln. Private to "leaking": k. Private to "leaping": p.
"leaking" · 7 letters · shape CVVCVCC · "leaping" · 7 letters · shape CVVCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "leaking" for "leaping" ever safe?
Frequency check: "leaking" vs "leaping" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "leaking" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "leaping" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #334,778 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "leaking" and "leaping" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "lacing vs leaping". 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 #334,778 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.