Which to use
“thirteen” is a num and “thirteenth” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #8,494
- “thirteen” frequency rank
- #18,204
- “thirteenth” frequency rank
- 26698
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | thirteen | thirteenth |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | The cardinal number occurring after twelve and before fourteen: ten and three. | The ordinal form of the number thirteen. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set thirteen and thirteenth apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: thirteen is /ˌθɜːˈtiːn/ while thirteenth is /ˌθɜːˈtiːnθ/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “thirteen” sits inside “thirteenth”, and the parts of speech differ too (num vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 26698, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
thirteen is recorded at frequency rank #8,494, classified as anum, pronounced /ˌθɜːˈtiːn/. thirteenth is at rank #18,204, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ˌθɜːˈtiːnθ/.
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 26698, this pair ranks #384,739 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of thirteen vs thirteenth
Shared letters: ehinrt. Private to "thirteen": -. Private to "thirteenth": -.
"thirteen" · 8 letters · shape CCVCCVVC · "thirteenth" · 10 letters · shape CCVCCVVCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- thirteen ← htirteen · thhirteen · thireten · thirrteen · thirteenn · thirten · thirtene · thirtteen
- thirteenth ← htirteenth · thhirteenth · thiretenth · thirrteenth · thirteenht · thirteennth · thirteenthh · thirteentth
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "thirteen" and "thirteenth" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "thirteen" or "thirteenth"?
Remembering thirteen vs thirteenth
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a num, it's “thirteen”; for an adjective, it's “thirteenth”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “thirteen” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable