Which to use
“measure” and “measures” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,261
- “measure” frequency rank
- #2,165
- “measures” frequency rank
- 4426
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | measure | measures |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A prescribed quantity or extent. | plural of measure |
Where the eye mixes measure and measures
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence. measure runs 7 letters (CVVCVCV) against measures's 8 (CVVCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses measure with measures
A purely visual mix-up. measure (/ˈmɛʒ.ə/) and measures (/ˈmɛʒɚz/) 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 extra letter(s) - “measure” sits inside “measures”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 4426, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
measure is recorded at frequency rank #2,261, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈmɛʒ.ə/. measures is at rank #2,165, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈmɛʒɚz/.
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 4426, this pair ranks #518,977 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of measure vs measures
Shared letters: aemrsu. Private to "measure": -. Private to "measures": -.
"measure" · 7 letters · shape CVVCVCV · "measures" · 8 letters · shape CVVCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "measure" and "measures" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "measure" vs "measures" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "measure" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "measures" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #518,977 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "measure" and "measures" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "meagre vs measure". 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 #518,977 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.