Which to use
“locks” and “loss” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #7,810
- “locks” frequency rank
- #907
- “loss” frequency rank
- 8717
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | locks | loss |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of lock | The result of no longer possessing an object, a function, or a characteristic due to external causes or misplacement. |
Where the eye mixes locks and loss
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between locks and loss
A purely visual mix-up. locks (/lɒks/) and loss (/lɒs/) 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 8717, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
locks is recorded at frequency rank #7,810, classified as anoun, pronounced /lɒks/. loss is at rank #907, tagged as anoun, pronounced /lɒs/.
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 8717, this pair ranks #501,078 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of locks vs loss
Shared letters: los. Private to "locks": ck. Private to "loss": -.
"locks" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC · "loss" · 4 letters · shape CVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "locks" and "loss" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary English text, does "locks" or "loss" show up more?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "locks" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "loss" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #501,078 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "locks" and "loss" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "locks 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 #501,078 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.