Which to use
“weak” is an adjective and “weave” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,237
- “weak” frequency rank
- #14,455
- “weave” frequency rank
- 16692
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | weak | weave |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Lacking in force (usually strength) or ability. | To form something by passing lengths or strands of material over and under one another. |
Where the eye mixes weak and weave
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses weak with weave
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: weak is /wiːk/ while weave is /wiːv/. 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 (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 16692, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
weak is recorded at frequency rank #2,237, classified as anadj, pronounced /wiːk/. weave is at rank #14,455, tagged as averb, pronounced /wiːv/.
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 16692, this pair ranks #456,146 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of weak vs weave
Shared letters: aew. Private to "weak": k. Private to "weave": v.
"weak" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "weave" · 5 letters · shape CVVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "weak" and "weave" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "weak" vs "weave" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "weak" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "weave" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #456,146 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "weak" and "weave" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "weave vs wove". 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 #456,146 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.