Which to use
“loco” is an adverb and “locum” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #22,141
- “loco” frequency rank
- #47,732
- “locum” frequency rank
- 69873
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | loco | locum |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A direction in written or printed music to be returning to the proper pitch after having played an octave higher or lower. | Ellipsis of locum tenens. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set loco and locum apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
loco and locum form a confusable pair in the English index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 69873, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
loco is recorded at frequency rank #22,141, classified as anadv, pronounced /ˈləʊ.kəʊ/. locum is at rank #47,732, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈləʊkəm/.
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 69873, this pair ranks #52,778 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "loco" and "locum" be used interchangeably?
Remembering loco vs locum
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need an adverb, it's “loco”; for a noun, it's “locum”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “loco” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable