we'llvswillWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: we'll is a contraction, will is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“we'll” is a contraction and “will” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#1,379
“we'll” frequency rank
#40
“will” frequency rank
1419
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature we'll will
Definition we will Used to express the future tense, sometimes with an implication of volition or determination when used in the first person. Compare shall.

Where the eye mixes we'll and will

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.

5 ch
we'll
4 ch
will

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: we'll is /wiːl/ while will is /wɪl/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (contraction vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 1419, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

we'll is recorded at frequency rank #1,379, classified as acontraction, pronounced /wiːl/. will is at rank #40, tagged as averb, pronounced /wɪl/.

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 1419, this pair ranks #527,463 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of we'll vs will

Shared letters: lw. Private to "we'll": e. Private to "will": i.

"we'll" · 4 letters · shape CVCC  ·  "will" · 4 letters · shape CVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • williwll · wil · wlil · wwill

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "we'll" and "will" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "we'll" is a contraction and "will" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "we'll" or "will"?
"will" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #40 in our English list, against #1,379 for "we'll". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list