Which to use
“pokes” is a verb and “pole” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #32,127
- “pokes” frequency rank
- #4,879
- “pole” frequency rank
- 37006
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pokes | pole |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | third-person singular simple present indicative of poke | Originally, a stick; now specifically, a long and slender piece of metal or (especially) wood, used for various construction or support purposes. |
Where the eye mixes pokes and pole
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses pokes with pole
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: pokes is /pəʊks/ while pole is /pəʊl/. 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 (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 37006, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pokes is recorded at frequency rank #32,127, classified as averb, pronounced /pəʊks/. pole is at rank #4,879, tagged as anoun, pronounced /pəʊl/.
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 37006, this pair ranks #298,218 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of pokes vs pole
Shared letters: eop. Private to "pokes": ks. Private to "pole": l.
"pokes" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "pole" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "pokes" and "pole" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "pokes" or "pole"?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "pokes" and "pole" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "pokes" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "pole" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #298,218 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "pokes" and "pole" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "pokes vs Pyke". 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 #298,218 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.