gemvsgetsWhat's the difference?

Which to use

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

#40,782
“gem” frequency rank
#46,785
“gets” frequency rank
87567
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature gem gets
Definition Gemme. Pluriel de get.

Where the spellings diverge

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

3 ch
gem
4 ch
gets

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. gem (\dʒɛm\) and gets (\ˈɡɛts\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 87567, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

gem is recorded at frequency rank #40,782, classified as anoun, pronounced \dʒɛm\. gets is at rank #46,785, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ˈɡɛts\.

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 87567, this pair ranks #8,094 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of gem vs gets

Shared letters: eg. Private to "gem": m. Private to "gets": st.

"gem" · 3 letters · shape CVC  ·  "gets" · 4 letters · shape CVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • getsegts · gest · getss · getts · ggets · gtes

Frequency comparison

gem#40,782
gets#46,785

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "gem" and "gets" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\dʒɛm\ versus \ˈɡɛts\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "gem" or "gets"?
"gem" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #40,782 in our French list, against #46,785 for "gets". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering gem vs gets

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 “gem” 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