Which to use
“peak” is a noun and “peeks” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,847
- “peak” frequency rank
- #47,252
- “peeks” frequency rank
- 50099
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | peak | peeks |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A point; the sharp end or top of anything that terminates in a point; as, the peak, or front, of a cap. | third-person singular simple present indicative of peek |
Where the eye mixes peak and peeks
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence. peak runs 4 letters (CVVC) against peeks's 5 (CVVCC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses peak with peeks
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: peak is /piːk/ while peeks is /piːks/. 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 verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 50099, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
peak is recorded at frequency rank #2,847, classified as anoun, pronounced /piːk/. peeks is at rank #47,252, tagged as averb, pronounced /piːks/.
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 50099, this pair ranks #177,376 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of peak vs peeks
Shared letters: ekp. Private to "peak": a. Private to "peeks": s.
"peak" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "peeks" · 5 letters · shape CVVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "peak" for "peeks" ever safe?
Frequency check: "peak" vs "peeks" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "peak" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "peeks" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #177,376 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "peak" and "peeks" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "pecs vs peeks". 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 #177,376 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.