sakesvsSlatesWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: sakes is a noun, Slates is a name, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“sakes” is a noun and “Slates” is a name - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#33,006
“sakes” frequency rank
#46,781
“Slates” frequency rank
79787
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature sakes Slates
Definition plural of sake (“benefit”) A surname.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set sakes and Slates apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
sakes
6 ch
Slates

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: sakes is anoun and Slatesaname. On the page they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 79787, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

sakes is recorded at frequency rank #33,006, classified as anoun, pronounced /seɪks/. Slates is at rank #46,781, tagged as aname.

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 79787, this pair ranks #21,286 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of sakes vs Slates

Shared letters: aes. Private to "sakes": k. Private to "Slates": lt.

"sakes" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC  ·  "Slates" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • sakesaskes · saeks · sakess · sakkes · sakse · skaes · ssakes
  • Slateslsates · saltes · slaets · slatess · slatse · slattes · sllates · sltaes

Frequency comparison

sakes#33,006
Slates#46,781

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "sakes" and "Slates" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "sakes" is a noun and "Slates" a name, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "sakes" or "Slates"?
"sakes" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #33,006 in our English list, against #46,781 for "Slates". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering sakes vs Slates

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “sakes”; for a name, it's “Slates”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “sakes” 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