voidvsvoleWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: void is a adjective, vole is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“void” is an adjective and “vole” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#7,082
“void” frequency rank
#45,158
“vole” frequency rank
52240
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature void vole
Definition Containing nothing; empty; not occupied or filled. Any of a large number of species of small rodents of the tribes Arvicolini, Ellobiusini, Clethrionomyini, Pliomyini, Phenacomyini and Prometheomyini.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set void and vole apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
void
4 ch
vole

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

void and vole form a confusable pair in the English index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 52240, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

void is recorded at frequency rank #7,082, classified as anadj, pronounced /vɔɪd/. vole is at rank #45,158, tagged as anoun, pronounced /vəʊl/.

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 52240, this pair ranks #158,710 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Frequency comparison

void#7,082
vole#45,158

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "void" and "vole" be used interchangeably?
No, "void" and "vole" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering void vs vole

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “void”; for a noun, it's “vole”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “void” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list