Which to use
“lock” and “locket” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,954
- “lock” frequency rank
- #33,714
- “locket” frequency rank
- 36668
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lock | locket |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Something used for fastening, which can only be opened with a key or combination. | A pendant that opens to reveal a space used for storing a photograph or other small item. |
Where the eye mixes lock and locket
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: lock vs locket
A purely visual mix-up. lock (/lɒk/) and locket (/ˈlɒkɪt/) 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 2 extra letter(s) - “lock” sits inside “locket”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 36668, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
lock is recorded at frequency rank #2,954, classified as anoun, pronounced /lɒk/. locket is at rank #33,714, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈlɒkɪt/.
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 36668, this pair ranks #301,203 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of lock vs locket
Shared letters: cklo. Private to "lock": -. Private to "locket": et.
"lock" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "locket" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "lock" and "locket" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "lock" vs "locket" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "lock" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "locket" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #301,203 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "lock" and "locket" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "locket vs lockup". 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 #301,203 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.