pricevspricesWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“price” and “prices” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#592
“price” frequency rank
#1,403
“prices” frequency rank
1995
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature price prices
Definition The cost required to gain possession of something. plural of price

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set price and prices apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
price
6 ch
prices

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

price and prices form a confusable pair in the English index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “price” sits inside “prices” - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 1995, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

price is recorded at frequency rank #592, classified as anoun, pronounced /pɹaɪs/. prices is at rank #1,403, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈpɹaɪsɪz/.

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 1995, this pair ranks #526,100 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Frequency comparison

price#592
prices#1,403

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "price" and "prices" be used interchangeably?
No, "price" and "prices" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering price vs prices

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “price” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list