tomevsTomesWhat's the difference?

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

Which to use

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

#22,247
“tome” frequency rank
#46,822
“Tomes” frequency rank
69069
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature tome Tomes
Definition One in a series of volumes. A surname originating as a patronymic.

Where the spellings diverge

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

4 ch
tome
5 ch
Tomes

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: tome is anoun and Tomesaname. On the page they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “tome” sits inside “Tomes”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 69069, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

tome is recorded at frequency rank #22,247, classified as anoun, pronounced /təʊm/. Tomes is at rank #46,822, tagged as aname.

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 69069, this pair ranks #56,104 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of tome vs Tomes

Shared letters: emot. Private to "tome": -. Private to "Tomes": s.

"tome" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "Tomes" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • tomeotme · tmoe · toem · tomme · ttome
  • Tomesotmes · tmoes · toems · tomess · tommes · tomse · ttomes

Frequency comparison

tome#22,247
Tomes#46,822

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "tome" and "Tomes" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "tome" is a noun and "Tomes" a name, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "tome" or "Tomes"?
"tome" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #22,247 in our English list, against #46,822 for "Tomes". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering tome vs Tomes

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “tome”; for a name, it's “Tomes”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “tome” 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