Which to use
“rests” and “risks” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #12,313
- “rests” frequency rank
- #3,978
- “risks” frequency rank
- 16291
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | rests | risks |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of rest | plural of risk |
Where the eye mixes rests and risks
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: rests vs risks
A purely visual mix-up. rests (/ɹɛsts/) and risks (/ɹɪsks/) 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 16291, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
rests is recorded at frequency rank #12,313, classified as anoun, pronounced /ɹɛsts/. risks is at rank #3,978, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ɹɪsks/.
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 16291, this pair ranks #458,701 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of rests vs risks
Shared letters: rs. Private to "rests": et. Private to "risks": ik.
"rests" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC · "risks" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "rests" and "risks" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "rests" or "risks"?
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 "rests" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "risks" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #458,701 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "rests" and "risks" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "rests vs Revis". 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 #458,701 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.