cagevschaseWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“cage” and “chase” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#5,639
“cage” frequency rank
#15,831
“chase” frequency rank
21470
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature cage chase
Definition Petite loge portative faite de fils de fer ou de menus bâtons d’osier et dans laquelle on enferme ordinairement des petits animaux. Poursuite, suite, chasse.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set cage and chase apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
cage
5 ch
chase

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

cage and chase form a confusable pair in the French index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They differ by 1 letter(s) in length - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 21470, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

cage is recorded at frequency rank #5,639, classified as anoun, pronounced \kaʒ\. chase is at rank #15,831, tagged as anoun, pronounced \tʃeɪs\.

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 21470, this pair ranks #362,996 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Frequency comparison

cage#5,639
chase#15,831

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "cage" and "chase" be used interchangeably?
No, "cage" and "chase" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering cage vs chase

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 “cage” 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