Which to use
“sixth” is an adjective and “sloth” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #3,785
- “sixth” frequency rank
- #25,579
- “sloth” frequency rank
- 29364
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | sixth | sloth |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | The ordinal form of the number six. | Laziness; slowness in the mindset; disinclination to action or labour. |
Where the eye mixes sixth and sloth
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between sixth and sloth
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: sixth is /sɪksθ/ while sloth is /sləʊθ/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 29364, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
sixth is recorded at frequency rank #3,785, classified as anadj, pronounced /sɪksθ/. sloth is at rank #25,579, tagged as anoun, pronounced /sləʊθ/.
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 29364, this pair ranks #363,606 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of sixth vs sloth
Shared letters: hst. Private to "sixth": ix. Private to "sloth": lo.
"sixth" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC · "sloth" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "sixth" and "sloth" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "sixth" vs "sloth" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "sixth" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "sloth" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #363,606 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "sixth" and "sloth" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "sleuth vs sloth". 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 #363,606 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.