locivslopeWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: loci is a noun, lope is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“loci” is a noun and “lope” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#37,545
“loci” frequency rank
#49,466
“lope” frequency rank
87011
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature loci lope
Definition plural of locus To travel an easy pace with long strides.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set loci and lope apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
loci
4 ch
lope

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: loci is /ˈləʊsaɪ/ while lope is /ləʊp/. 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 (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 87011, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

loci is recorded at frequency rank #37,545, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈləʊsaɪ/. lope is at rank #49,466, tagged as averb, pronounced /ləʊp/.

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 87011, this pair ranks #8,187 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of loci vs lope

Shared letters: lo. Private to "loci": ci. Private to "lope": ep.

"loci" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "lope" · 4 letters · shape CVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • locilcoi · lloci · locci · loic · olci
  • lopellope · loep · loppe · lpoe · olpe

Frequency comparison

loci#37,545
lope#49,466

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "loci" and "lope" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "loci" is a noun and "lope" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "loci" or "lope"?
"loci" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #37,545 in our English list, against #49,466 for "lope". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering loci vs lope

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “loci”; for a verb, it's “lope”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “loci” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list