Which to use
“strainer” and “stringer” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #45,103
- “strainer” frequency rank
- #27,663
- “stringer” frequency rank
- 72766
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | strainer | stringer |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A device through which a liquid is passed for purification, filtering or separation from solid matter; anything (including a screen or a cloth) used to strain a liquid. | Someone who threads something; one who makes or provides strings, especially for bows. |
Where the eye mixes strainer and stringer
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: strainer vs stringer
A purely visual mix-up. strainer (/ˈstɹeɪnɚ/) and stringer (/stɹɪŋə/) 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 3 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 72766, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
strainer is recorded at frequency rank #45,103, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈstɹeɪnɚ/. stringer is at rank #27,663, tagged as anoun, pronounced /stɹɪŋə/.
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 72766, this pair ranks #41,932 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of strainer vs stringer
Shared letters: einrst. Private to "strainer": a. Private to "stringer": g.
"strainer" · 8 letters · shape CCCVVCVC · "stringer" · 8 letters · shape CCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "strainer" for "stringer" ever safe?
Frequency check: "strainer" vs "stringer" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "strainer" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "stringer" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #41,932 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "strainer" and "stringer" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "stringed vs stringer". 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 #41,932 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.