Which to use
“token” is a noun and “tone” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #48,832
- “token” frequency rank
- #44,780
- “tone” frequency rank
- 93612
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | token | tone |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Lexème ou lexie. | Deuxième personne du singulier de l’impératif présent de tonen. |
Where the eye mixes token and tone
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between token and tone
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: token is \to.kɛn\ while tone is \ˈtoːnə\. 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 verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 93612, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
token is recorded at frequency rank #48,832, classified as anoun, pronounced \to.kɛn\. tone is at rank #44,780, tagged as averb, pronounced \ˈtoːnə\.
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 93612, this pair ranks #2,151 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of token vs tone
Shared letters: enot. Private to "token": k. Private to "tone": -.
"token" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "tone" · 4 letters · shape CVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "token" and "tone" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "token" or "tone"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "token" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "tone" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #2,151 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "token" and "tone" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "toe vs token". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #2,151 of 440,172 scored French pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.