lodevsloxWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“lode” and “lox” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#41,231
“lode” frequency rank
#44,312
“lox” frequency rank
85543
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature lode lox
Definition A way or path; a road. Salmon that is cured in brine and then smoked at a low temperature so that the flesh remains uncooked.

Where the spellings diverge

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

4 ch
lode
3 ch
lox

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. lode (/ləʊd/) and lox (/lɒks/) 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 85543, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

lode is recorded at frequency rank #41,231, classified as anoun, pronounced /ləʊd/. lox is at rank #44,312, tagged as anoun, pronounced /lɒks/.

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 85543, this pair ranks #10,232 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of lode vs lox

Shared letters: lo. Private to "lode": de. Private to "lox": x.

"lode" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "lox" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • lodeldoe · llode · lodde

Frequency comparison

lode#41,231
lox#44,312

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "lode" and "lox" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/ləʊd/ versus /lɒks/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "lode" or "lox"?
"lode" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #41,231 in our English list, against #44,312 for "lox". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering lode vs lox

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “lode” 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