Which to use
“ports” and “post” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #6,396
- “ports” frequency rank
- #360
- “post” frequency rank
- 6756
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ports | post |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of port | A long dowel or plank protruding from the ground; a fencepost; a lightpost. |
Where the eye mixes ports and post
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses ports with post
A purely visual mix-up. ports (/pɔɹts/) and post (/pəʊst/) 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 6756, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ports is recorded at frequency rank #6,396, classified as anoun, pronounced /pɔɹts/. post is at rank #360, tagged as anoun, pronounced /pəʊst/.
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 6756, this pair ranks #510,110 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of ports vs post
Shared letters: opst. Private to "ports": r. Private to "post": -.
"ports" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC · "post" · 4 letters · shape CVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "ports" and "post" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "ports" or "post"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "ports" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "post" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #510,110 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ports" and "post" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "poops vs ports". 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 #510,110 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.