Which to use
“traces” and “tribes” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #8,497
- “traces” frequency rank
- #6,850
- “tribes” frequency rank
- 15347
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | traces | tribes |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of trace | plural of tribe |
Where the eye mixes traces and tribes
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses traces with tribes
A purely visual mix-up. traces (/ˈtɹeɪsɪz/) and tribes (/tɹaɪbz/) 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 15347, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
traces is recorded at frequency rank #8,497, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈtɹeɪsɪz/. tribes is at rank #6,850, tagged as anoun, pronounced /tɹaɪbz/.
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 15347, this pair ranks #464,516 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of traces vs tribes
Shared letters: erst. Private to "traces": ac. Private to "tribes": bi.
"traces" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC · "tribes" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "traces" and "tribes" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "traces" or "tribes"?
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 "traces" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "tribes" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #464,516 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "traces" and "tribes" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "traces vs tramps". 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 #464,516 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.