Which to use
“rebels” and “recess” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #6,404
- “rebels” frequency rank
- #14,396
- “recess” frequency rank
- 20800
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | rebels | recess |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of rebel | A depressed, hollow, or indented space; also, a hole or opening. |
Where the eye mixes rebels and recess
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between rebels and recess
A purely visual mix-up. rebels (/ˈɹɛbl̩z/) and recess (/ɹɪˈsɛs/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 20800, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
rebels is recorded at frequency rank #6,404, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈɹɛbl̩z/. recess is at rank #14,396, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ɹɪˈsɛs/.
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 20800, this pair ranks #428,564 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of rebels vs recess
Shared letters: ers. Private to "rebels": bl. Private to "recess": c.
"rebels" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC · "recess" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "rebels" for "recess" ever safe?
Which is more common, "rebels" or "recess"?
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 "rebels" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "recess" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #428,564 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "rebels" and "recess" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "recess vs remiss". 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 #428,564 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.