Which to use
“tasks” and “ticks” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #4,904
- “tasks” frequency rank
- #17,733
- “ticks” frequency rank
- 22637
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | tasks | ticks |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of task | plural of tick |
Where the eye mixes tasks and ticks
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between tasks and ticks
A purely visual mix-up. tasks (/tɑːsks/) and ticks (/tɪks/) 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 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 22637, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
tasks is recorded at frequency rank #4,904, classified as anoun, pronounced /tɑːsks/. ticks is at rank #17,733, tagged as anoun, pronounced /tɪks/.
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 22637, this pair ranks #415,127 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of tasks vs ticks
Shared letters: kst. Private to "tasks": a. Private to "ticks": ci.
"tasks" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC · "ticks" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "tasks" for "ticks" ever safe?
Frequency check: "tasks" vs "ticks" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "tasks" and "ticks" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "tasks" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "ticks" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #415,127 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "tasks" and "ticks" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ticks vs tik". 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 #415,127 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.