Which to use
“point” and “pointe” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #265
- “point” frequency rank
- #27,967
- “pointe” frequency rank
- 28232
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | point | pointe |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A small dot or mark. | The tip of the toe; a ballet position executed with the tip of the toe. |
Where the eye mixes point and pointe
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence. point runs 5 letters (CVVCC) against pointe's 6 (CVVCCV) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses point with pointe
A purely visual mix-up. point (/pɔɪnt/) and pointe (/pwæ̃t/) 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 extra letter(s) - “point” sits inside “pointe”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 28232, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
point is recorded at frequency rank #265, classified as anoun, pronounced /pɔɪnt/. pointe is at rank #27,967, tagged as anoun, pronounced /pwæ̃t/.
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 28232, this pair ranks #372,665 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of point vs pointe
Shared letters: inopt. Private to "point": -. Private to "pointe": e.
"point" · 5 letters · shape CVVCC · "pointe" · 6 letters · shape CVVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "point" and "pointe" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "point" vs "pointe" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "point" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "pointe" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #372,665 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "point" and "pointe" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "plinth vs pointe". 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 #372,665 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.