Which to use
“waits” and “writ” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #11,637
- “waits” frequency rank
- #19,743
- “writ” frequency rank
- 31380
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | waits | writ |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of wait | A written order, issued by a court, ordering someone to do (or stop doing) something. |
Where the eye mixes waits and writ
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between waits and writ
A purely visual mix-up. waits (/weɪts/) and writ (/ɹɪt/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 31380, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
waits is recorded at frequency rank #11,637, classified as anoun, pronounced /weɪts/. writ is at rank #19,743, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ɹɪt/.
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 31380, this pair ranks #346,648 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of waits vs writ
Shared letters: itw. Private to "waits": as. Private to "writ": r.
"waits" · 5 letters · shape CVVCC · "writ" · 4 letters · shape CCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "waits" and "writ" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "waits" or "writ"?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "waits" and "writ" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "waits" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "writ" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #346,648 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "waits" and "writ" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "wim vs writ". 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 #346,648 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.