SoamesvsstaresWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: Soames is a name, stares is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“Soames” is a name and “stares” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#43,927
“Soames” frequency rank
#19,214
“stares” frequency rank
63141
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Soames stares
Definition A surname. plural of stare

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Soames and stares apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
Soames
6 ch
stares

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: Soames is aname and staresanoun. On the page they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 63141, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Soames is recorded at frequency rank #43,927, classified as aname. stares is at rank #19,214, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈstɛəz/.

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 63141, this pair ranks #84,644 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of Soames vs stares

Shared letters: aes. Private to "Soames": mo. Private to "stares": rt.

"Soames" · 6 letters · shape CVVCVC  ·  "stares" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Soamesosames · saomes · soaems · soamess · soammes · soamse · somaes · ssoames
  • staressatres · sstares · staers · staress · starres · starse · straes · sttares

Frequency comparison

Soames#43,927
stares#19,214

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Soames" and "stares" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Soames" is a name and "stares" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Soames" or "stares"?
"stares" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #19,214 in our English list, against #43,927 for "Soames". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Soames vs stares

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a name, it's “Soames”; for a noun, it's “stares”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “Soames” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list