Which to use
“programme” and “programs” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,641
- “programme” frequency rank
- #1,351
- “programs” frequency rank
- 3992
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | programme | programs |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | British, New Zealand, and India standard spelling of program. | plural of program |
Where the eye mixes programme and programs
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between programme and programs
A purely visual mix-up. programme (/ˈpɹoʊˌɡɹæm/) and programs (/ˈpɹəʊ.ɡɹæmz/) 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 3992, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
programme is recorded at frequency rank #2,641, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈpɹoʊˌɡɹæm/. programs is at rank #1,351, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈpɹəʊ.ɡɹæmz/.
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 3992, this pair ranks #520,335 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of programme vs programs
Shared letters: agmopr. Private to "programme": e. Private to "programs": s.
"programme" · 9 letters · shape CCVCCVCCV · "programs" · 8 letters · shape CCVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "programme" and "programs" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "programme" vs "programs" - 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 "programme" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "programs" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #520,335 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "programme" and "programs" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "programme vs programmer". 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 #520,335 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.