Which to use
“yoke” and “yolk” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #25,982
- “yoke” frequency rank
- #27,706
- “yolk” frequency rank
- 53688
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | yoke | yolk |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Senses relating to a frame around the neck. | The yellow, spherical part of an egg that is surrounded by the white albumen, and serves as nutriment for the growing young. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set yoke and yolk apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
This is the hard kind. yoke and yolk are pronounced identically (/jəʊk/) and both work as anoun. Neither the ear nor the grammar will rescue you; only the meaning does, so the glosses below are the whole decision. They share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 53688, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
yoke is recorded at frequency rank #25,982, classified as anoun, pronounced /jəʊk/. yolk is at rank #27,706, tagged as anoun, pronounced /jəʊk/.
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 53688, this pair ranks #146,996 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of yoke vs yolk
Shared letters: koy. Private to "yoke": e. Private to "yolk": l.
"yoke" · 4 letters · shape VVCV · "yolk" · 4 letters · shape VVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "yoke" and "yolk" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "yoke" or "yolk"?
Remembering yoke vs yolk
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “yoke” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable