laidvslastWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: laid is a adjective, last is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“laid” is an adjective and “last” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#12,805
“laid” frequency rank
#10,733
“last” frequency rank
23538
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature laid last
Definition Qui a quelque défaut qui se remarque dans les proportions, dans les formes ou dans les couleurs qui constituent la beauté chez les hommes et chez les animaux. Poids de deux tonneaux de mer ou 2000 kilogrammes.

Where the spellings diverge

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

4 ch
laid
4 ch
last

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

laid and last form a confusable pair in the French index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 23538, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

laid is recorded at frequency rank #12,805, classified as anadj, pronounced \lɛ\. last is at rank #10,733, tagged as anoun, pronounced \last\.

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 23538, this pair ranks #351,915 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Frequency comparison

laid#12,805
last#10,733

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "laid" and "last" be used interchangeably?
No, "laid" and "last" 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 laid vs last

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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