Which to use
“gem” and “gra” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #40,782
- “gem” frequency rank
- #44,481
- “gra” frequency rank
- 85263
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | gem | gra |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Gemme. | Acte, action. |
Where the eye mixes gem and gra
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence. gem (CVC) and gra (CCV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Look-alike desk: gem vs gra
A purely visual mix-up. gem (\dʒɛm\) and gra (\ˈɡrɑː\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 85263, 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\. gra is at rank #44,481, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ˈɡrɑː\.
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 85263, this pair ranks #11,624 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of gem vs gra
Shared letters: g. Private to "gem": em. Private to "gra": ar.
"gem" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "gra" · 3 letters · shape CCV
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "gem" for "gra" ever safe?
Frequency check: "gem" vs "gra" - which ranks higher?
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 "gem" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "gra" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #11,624 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "gem" and "gra" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "gra vs gx". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #11,624 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.