Which to use
“scold” and “scroll” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #36,752
- “scold” frequency rank
- #8,854
- “scroll” frequency rank
- 45606
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | scold | scroll |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A person who habitually scolds, in particular a troublesome and angry woman. | A roll of paper or parchment; a writing formed into a roll. |
Where the eye mixes scold and scroll
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses scold with scroll
A purely visual mix-up. scold (/skəʊld/) and scroll (/skɹoʊl/) 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 45606, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
scold is recorded at frequency rank #36,752, classified as anoun, pronounced /skəʊld/. scroll is at rank #8,854, tagged as anoun, pronounced /skɹoʊl/.
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 45606, this pair ranks #219,656 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of scold vs scroll
Shared letters: clos. Private to "scold": d. Private to "scroll": r.
"scold" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC · "scroll" · 6 letters · shape CCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "scold" for "scroll" ever safe?
In ordinary English text, does "scold" or "scroll" show up more?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "scold" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "scroll" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #219,656 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "scold" and "scroll" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "scold vs sola". 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 #219,656 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.