Which to use
“pasts” and “pate” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #44,990
- “pasts” frequency rank
- #33,784
- “pate” frequency rank
- 78774
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pasts | pate |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of past | The head, particularly the top or crown. |
Where the eye mixes pasts and pate
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses pasts with pate
A purely visual mix-up. pasts (/pɑːsts/) and pate (/peɪt/) 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 78774, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pasts is recorded at frequency rank #44,990, classified as anoun, pronounced /pɑːsts/. pate is at rank #33,784, tagged as anoun, pronounced /peɪt/.
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 78774, this pair ranks #23,816 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of pasts vs pate
Shared letters: apt. Private to "pasts": s. Private to "pate": e.
"pasts" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC · "pate" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "pasts" and "pate" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "pasts" vs "pate" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "pasts" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "pate" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #23,816 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "pasts" and "pate" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Palos vs pasts". 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 #23,816 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.