Which to use
“savour” is a noun and “sour” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #38,147
- “savour” frequency rank
- #8,610
- “sour” frequency rank
- 46757
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | savour | sour |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | An aroma or smell. | Tasting of acidity. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set savour and sour apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: savour is /ˈseɪvə/ while sour is /ˈsaʊə/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 46757, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
savour is recorded at frequency rank #38,147, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈseɪvə/. sour is at rank #8,610, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ˈsaʊə/.
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 46757, this pair ranks #208,764 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of savour vs sour
Shared letters: orsu. Private to "savour": av. Private to "sour": -.
"savour" · 6 letters · shape CVCVVC · "sour" · 4 letters · shape CVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "savour" and "sour" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "savour" or "sour"?
Remembering savour vs sour
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “savour”; for an adjective, it's “sour”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “savour” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable