Which to use
“nape” and “nose” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #44,953
- “nape” frequency rank
- #2,956
- “nose” frequency rank
- 47909
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | nape | nose |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | The back part of the neck. | A protuberance on the face housing the nostrils, which are used to breathe or smell. |
Where the eye mixes nape and nose
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: nape vs nose
A purely visual mix-up. nape (/neɪp/) and nose ([nəʊ̯z]) 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 47909, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
nape is recorded at frequency rank #44,953, classified as anoun, pronounced /neɪp/. nose is at rank #2,956, tagged as anoun, pronounced [nəʊ̯z].
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 47909, this pair ranks #198,035 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of nape vs nose
Shared letters: en. Private to "nape": ap. Private to "nose": os.
"nape" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "nose" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "nape" for "nose" ever safe?
Frequency check: "nape" vs "nose" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "nape" and "nose" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "nape" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "nose" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #198,035 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "nape" and "nose" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "nape vs NPL". 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 #198,035 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.