loftvslogConfusable pair

Which to use

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

#14,786
“loft” frequency rank
#3,826
“log” frequency rank
18612
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature loft log
Definition Air, the air; the sky, the heavens. The trunk of a dead tree, cleared of branches.

Where the eye mixes loft and log

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.

4 ch
loft
3 ch
log

Why the eye confuses loft with log

A purely visual mix-up. loft (/lɒft/) and log (/lɒɡ/) 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 18612, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

loft is recorded at frequency rank #14,786, classified as anoun, pronounced /lɒft/. log is at rank #3,826, tagged as anoun, pronounced /lɒɡ/.

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 18612, this pair ranks #443,733 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of loft vs log

Shared letters: lo. Private to "loft": ft. Private to "log": g.

"loft" · 4 letters · shape CVCC  ·  "log" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • loftlfot · lloft · lofft · loftt · lotf · olft

Frequently Asked Questions

Do "loft" and "log" mean the same thing in a sentence?
No. They are said differently (/lɒft/ versus /lɒɡ/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Frequency check: "loft" vs "log" - which ranks higher?
"log" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #3,826 in our English list, against #14,786 for "loft". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "loft" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "log" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #443,733 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "loft" and "log" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "loft vs lope". 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 #443,733 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list