Which to use
“machete” and “machine” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #23,894
- “machete” frequency rank
- #1,346
- “machine” frequency rank
- 25240
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | machete | machine |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A sword-like tool used for cutting large plants with a chopping motion, or used as a weapon. | A device that directs and controls energy, often in the form of movement or electricity, to produce a certain effect. |
Where the eye mixes machete and machine
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses machete with machine
A purely visual mix-up. machete (/məˈʃɛ.ti/) and machine (/məˈʃiːn/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 25240, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
machete is recorded at frequency rank #23,894, classified as anoun, pronounced /məˈʃɛ.ti/. machine is at rank #1,346, tagged as anoun, pronounced /məˈʃiːn/.
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 25240, this pair ranks #395,834 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of machete vs machine
Shared letters: acehm. Private to "machete": t. Private to "machine": in.
"machete" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV · "machine" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "machete" and "machine" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary English text, does "machete" or "machine" show up more?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "machete" and "machine" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "machete" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "machine" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #395,834 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "machete" and "machine" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "machine vs Manchin". 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 #395,834 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.