pacesvsPiscesWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: paces is a noun, Pisces is a name, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“paces” is a noun and “Pisces” is a name - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#23,348
“paces” frequency rank
#30,537
“Pisces” frequency rank
53885
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature paces Pisces
Definition plural of pace A constellation of the zodiac traditionally figured as a pair of fish with their tails tied by a ribbon.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set paces and Pisces apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
paces
6 ch
Pisces

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: paces is /ˈpeɪsɪz/ while Pisces is /ˈpaɪsiːz/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs name), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 53885, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

paces is recorded at frequency rank #23,348, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈpeɪsɪz/. Pisces is at rank #30,537, tagged as aname, pronounced /ˈpaɪsiːz/.

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 53885, this pair ranks #145,399 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of paces vs Pisces

Shared letters: ceps. Private to "paces": a. Private to "Pisces": i.

"paces" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "Pisces" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • pacesapces · pacces · pacess · pacse · paecs · pcaes · ppaces
  • Piscesipsces · picses · piscces · piscess · piscse · pisecs · pissces · ppisces

Frequency comparison

paces#23,348
Pisces#30,537

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "paces" and "Pisces" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "paces" is a noun and "Pisces" a name, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "paces" or "Pisces"?
"paces" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #23,348 in our English list, against #30,537 for "Pisces". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering paces vs Pisces

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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