Which to use
“unload” is a verb and “untold” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #21,399
- “unload” frequency rank
- #19,239
- “untold” frequency rank
- 40638
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | unload | untold |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To remove the load or cargo from (a vehicle, etc.). | Not told; not related; not revealed; secret. |
Where the eye mixes unload and untold
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence. unload (VCCVVC) and untold (VCCVCC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Visual trap between unload and untold
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: unload is /ʌnˈləʊd/ while untold is /ʌnˈtəʊld/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 40638, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
unload is recorded at frequency rank #21,399, classified as averb, pronounced /ʌnˈləʊd/. untold is at rank #19,239, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ʌnˈtəʊld/.
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 40638, this pair ranks #265,729 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of unload vs untold
Shared letters: dlnou. Private to "unload": a. Private to "untold": t.
"unload" · 6 letters · shape VCCVVC · "untold" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "unload" and "untold" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "unload" vs "untold" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Eye-level mix-up between "unload" and "untold" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "unload" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "untold" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #265,729 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "unload" and "untold" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "unload vs unread". 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 #265,729 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.