Which to use
“parts” and “past” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #911
- “parts” frequency rank
- #437
- “past” frequency rank
- 1348
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | parts | past |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of part | The period of time that has already happened, in contrast to the present and the future. |
Where the eye mixes parts and past
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
A purely visual mix-up. parts (/pɑːts/) and past (/pɑːst/) 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 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 1348, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
parts is recorded at frequency rank #911, classified as anoun, pronounced /pɑːts/. past is at rank #437, tagged as anoun, pronounced /pɑːst/.
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 1348, this pair ranks #527,603 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of parts vs past
Shared letters: apst. Private to "parts": r. Private to "past": -.
"parts" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC · "past" · 4 letters · shape CVCC