wordvswormsWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“word” and “worms” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#13,941
“word” frequency rank
#35,777
“worms” frequency rank
49718
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature word worms
Definition Mot. Pluriel de worm.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set word and worms apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

4 ch
word
5 ch
worms

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. word (\ˈwɝd\) and worms (\wɜːms\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 49718, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

word is recorded at frequency rank #13,941, classified as anoun, pronounced \ˈwɝd\. worms is at rank #35,777, tagged as anoun, pronounced \wɜːms\.

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 49718, this pair ranks #168,367 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of word vs worms

Shared letters: orw. Private to "word": d. Private to "worms": ms.

"word" · 4 letters · shape CVCC  ·  "worms" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • wordowrd · wodr · wordd · worrd · wrod · wword
  • wormsowrms · womrs · wormms · wormss · worrms · worsm · wroms · wworms

Frequency comparison

word#13,941
worms#35,777

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "word" and "worms" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\ˈwɝd\ versus \wɜːms\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "word" or "worms"?
"word" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #13,941 in our French list, against #35,777 for "worms". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering word vs worms

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “word” 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