matedvsMayesWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: mated is a verb, Mayes is a name, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“mated” is a verb and “Mayes” is a name - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#32,074
“mated” frequency rank
#46,054
“Mayes” frequency rank
78128
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature mated Mayes
Definition simple past and past participle of mate A surname.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set mated and Mayes apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
mated
5 ch
Mayes

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: mated is averb and Mayesaname. On the page they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 78128, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

mated is recorded at frequency rank #32,074, classified as averb, pronounced /ˈmeɪtɪd/. Mayes is at rank #46,054, tagged as aname.

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 78128, this pair ranks #25,402 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of mated vs Mayes

Shared letters: aem. Private to "mated": dt. Private to "Mayes": sy.

"mated" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "Mayes" · 5 letters · shape CVVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • matedamted · maetd · matde · matedd · mmated · mtaed
  • Mayesamyes · maeys · mayess · mayse · mayyes · mmayes · myaes

Frequency comparison

mated#32,074
Mayes#46,054

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "mated" and "Mayes" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "mated" is a verb and "Mayes" a name, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "mated" or "Mayes"?
"mated" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #32,074 in our English list, against #46,054 for "Mayes". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering mated vs Mayes

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “mated”; for a name, it's “Mayes”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “mated” 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