Which to use
“shot” is an adjective and “show” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #612
- “shot” frequency rank
- #199
- “show” frequency rank
- 811
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | shot | show |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Tired, weary. | To display, to have somebody see (something). |
Where the eye mixes shot and show
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: shot is /ʃɒt/ while show is /ʃəʊ/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - t in “shot” becomes w in “show”, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 811, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
shot is recorded at frequency rank #612, classified as anadj, pronounced /ʃɒt/. show is at rank #199, tagged as averb, pronounced /ʃəʊ/.
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 811, this pair ranks #528,738 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of shot vs show
Shared letters: hos. Private to "shot": t. Private to "show": w.
"shot" · 4 letters · shape CCVC · "show" · 4 letters · shape CCVC