roundvsrunWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: round is a noun, run is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“round” is a noun and “run” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#18,074
“round” frequency rank
#15,221
“run” frequency rank
33295
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature round run
Definition En boxeo, asalto, cada una de las partes o tiempos de que consta un combate. Correr.

Where the eye mixes round and run

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

5 ch
round
3 ch
run

Look-alike desk: round vs run

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: round is [ˈrãwn] while run is /ɹʌn/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33295, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

round is recorded at frequency rank #18,074, classified as anoun, pronounced [ˈrãwn]. run is at rank #15,221, tagged as averb, pronounced /ɹʌn/.

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 33295, this pair ranks #197,503 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of round vs run

Shared letters: nru. Private to "round": do. Private to "run": -.

"round" · 5 letters · shape CVVCC  ·  "run" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • roundorund · ronud · roudn · roundd · rounnd · rround · ruond

Frequently Asked Questions

Is swapping "round" for "run" ever safe?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "round" is a noun and "run" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "round" or "run"?
"run" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #15,221 in our Spanish list, against #18,074 for "round". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.

  • Full dictionary entry for "round" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "run" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #197,503 of 323,831 scored Spanish confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "round" and "run" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "ruano vs run". 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 #197,503 of 323,831 scored Spanish pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list