Which to use
“shits” and “smith” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #12,326
- “shits” frequency rank
- #1,376
- “smith” frequency rank
- 13702
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | shits | smith |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of shit | A craftsperson who works metal into desired forms using a hammer and other tools, sometimes heating the metal to make it more workable, especially a blacksmith. |
Where the eye mixes shits and smith
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses shits with smith
A purely visual mix-up. shits (/ʃɪts/) and smith (/smɪθ/) 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 13702, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
shits is recorded at frequency rank #12,326, classified as anoun, pronounced /ʃɪts/. smith is at rank #1,376, tagged as anoun, pronounced /smɪθ/.
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 13702, this pair ranks #474,294 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of shits vs smith
Shared letters: hist. Private to "shits": -. Private to "smith": m.
"shits" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC · "smith" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "shits" and "smith" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "shits" vs "smith" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "shits" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "smith" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #474,294 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "shits" and "smith" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "shits vs SIDS". 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 #474,294 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.