Which to use
“ek” is a pronoun and “em” is a preposition - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #37,574
- “ek” frequency rank
- #7,152
- “em” frequency rank
- 44726
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | ek | em |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Yo. | En. |
Where the eye mixes ek and em
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Look-alike desk: ek vs em
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: ek is [ɛk] while em is [ĩ]. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - k in “ek” becomes m in “em”, and the parts of speech differ too (pronoun vs preposition), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 44726, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
ek is recorded at frequency rank #37,574, classified as apron, pronounced [ɛk]. em is at rank #7,152, tagged as aprep, pronounced [ĩ].
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 44726, this pair ranks #135,458 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of ek vs em
Shared letters: e. Private to "ek": k. Private to "em": m.
"ek" · 2 letters · shape VC · "em" · 2 letters · shape VC
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "ek" for "em" ever safe?
Frequency check: "ek" vs "em" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "ek" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "em" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #135,458 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "ek" and "em" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ek vs EPL". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #135,458 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.