hole vs hom, What's the Difference?

Which to use

“hole” is a noun and “hom” is an intj - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#28,986
“hole” frequency rank: #33,723
“hom” frequency rank: 62709
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	hole	hom
Definition	Trou.	Qui exprime le doute, la défiance.

Where the spellings diverge

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

4 ch

hole

3 ch

hom

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: hole is \ˈhoʊl\ while hom is ^((h aspiré))\ɔm\. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs intj), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 62709, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

hole is recorded at frequency rank #28,986, classified as anoun, pronounced \ˈhoʊl\. hom is at rank #33,723, tagged as anintj, pronounced ^((h aspiré))\ɔm\.

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 62709, this pair ranks #85,729 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of hole vs hom

Shared letters: ho. Private to "hole": el. Private to "hom": m.

"hole" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "hom" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Known mistypes of this pair

hole ← hhole · hloe · hoel · holle · ohle

Frequency comparison

hole#28,986

hom#33,723

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "hole" and "hom" be used interchangeably?

No - they are not even the same part of speech. "hole" is a noun and "hom" an intj, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.

Which is more common, "hole" or "hom"?

"hole" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #28,986 in our French list, against #33,723 for "hom". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering hole vs hom

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “hole”; for an intj, it's “hom”.
See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “hole” entry
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