threatsvsthreesWhich spelling fits?

Which to use

“threats” and “threes” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#4,498
“threats” frequency rank
#28,401
“threes” frequency rank
32899
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature threats threes
Definition plural of threat The age of three; three years old.

Letter map: threats vs threes

Shared letters muted; letters that set threats and threes apart highlighted. Shared run: 5. threats runs 7 letters (CCCVVCC) against threes's 6 (CCCVVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.

7 ch
threats
6 ch
threes

Pair insight - threats / threes

threats and threes are indexed as a confusable English pair. We have no recorded pronunciation or part of speech for both members, so the spelling overlap is what we can show you: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 32899, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

threats is recorded at frequency rank #4,498, classified as anoun, pronounced /θɹɛts/. threes is at rank #28,401, tagged as anoun.

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 32899, this pair ranks #333,968 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of threats vs threes

Shared letters: ehrst. Private to "threats": a. Private to "threes": -.

"threats" · 7 letters · shape CCCVVCC  ·  "threes" · 6 letters · shape CCCVVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • threats ← htreats · therats · thhreats · thraets · threast · threatss · threatts · thretas
  • threes ← htrees · thhrees · threess · thres · threse · thrrees · trhees · tthrees

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "threats" for "threes" ever safe?
No. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length, but the dictionary glosses above give them different meanings, so swapping one for the other changes what the sentence says.
Frequency check: "threats" vs "threes" - which ranks higher?
"threats" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #4,498 in our English list, against #28,401 for "threes". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

After this comparison

Done with this confusable. These links stay specific to "threats" and "threes".

  • Full dictionary entry for "threats" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "threes" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #333,968 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "threats" and "threes" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Thales vs threes". 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 #333,968 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list