halevsHoldWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: hale is a verb, Hold is a name, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“hale” is a verb and “Hold” is a name - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#28,395
“hale” frequency rank
#30,508
“Hold” frequency rank
58903
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature hale Hold
Definition Primera persona del singular (yo) del presente de subjuntivo de halar. Luna (satélite natural de la Tierra).

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set hale and Hold apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
hale
4 ch
Hold

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: hale is [ˈale] while Hold is /hold/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs name), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 58903, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

hale is recorded at frequency rank #28,395, classified as averb, pronounced [ˈale]. Hold is at rank #30,508, tagged as aname, pronounced /hold/.

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 58903, this pair ranks #64,669 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of hale vs Hold

Shared letters: hl. Private to "hale": ae. Private to "Hold": do.

"hale" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "Hold" · 4 letters · shape CVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • haleahle · hael · hhale · hlae
  • Holdhhold · hlod · hodl · holdd · holld · ohld

Frequency comparison

hale#28,395
Hold#30,508

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "hale" and "Hold" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "hale" is a verb and "Hold" a name, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "hale" or "Hold"?
"hale" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #28,395 in our Spanish list, against #30,508 for "Hold". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering hale vs Hold

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “hale”; for a name, it's “Hold”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “hale” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list