Which to use
“sixteen” is a num and “sixteenth” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #7,743
- “sixteen” frequency rank
- #17,720
- “sixteenth” frequency rank
- 25463
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | sixteen | sixteenth |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | The cardinal number occurring after fifteen and before seventeen, represented in Arabic numerals as 16 and in Roman numerals as XVI. | The ordinal form of the number sixteen. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set sixteen and sixteenth apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
sixteen and sixteenth form a confusable pair in the English index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “sixteen” sits inside “sixteenth” - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 25463, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
sixteen is recorded at frequency rank #7,743, classified as anum, pronounced /ˈsɪks.tiːn/. sixteenth is at rank #17,720, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ˌsɪksˈtiːnθ/.
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 25463, this pair ranks #394,075 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "sixteen" and "sixteenth" be used interchangeably?
Remembering sixteen vs sixteenth
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a num, it's “sixteen”; for an adjective, it's “sixteenth”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “sixteen” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable