RunevsrunesWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: Rune is a name, runes is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“Rune” is a name and “runes” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#47,011
“Rune” frequency rank
#40,477
“runes” frequency rank
87488
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Rune runes
Definition Nom de famille. Pluriel de rune.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Rune and runes apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
Rune
5 ch
runes

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: Rune is aname and runesanoun. On the page they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “Rune” sits inside “runes”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 87488, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Rune is recorded at frequency rank #47,011, classified as aname. runes is at rank #40,477, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ʁyn\.

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 87488, this pair ranks #8,214 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of Rune vs runes

Shared letters: enru. Private to "Rune": -. Private to "runes": s.

"Rune" · 4 letters · shape CVCV  ·  "runes" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • Runernue · rrune · ruen · runne
  • runesrnues · rrunes · ruens · runess · runnes · runse

Frequency comparison

Rune#47,011
runes#40,477

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Rune" and "runes" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Rune" is a name and "runes" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Rune" or "runes"?
"runes" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #40,477 in our French list, against #47,011 for "Rune". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Rune vs runes

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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