“Carat” vs. “Caret”: What’s the Difference?

A line illustration of two people with their mouth open, and a giant question mark between them.

The difference between “carat” and “caret”

  • Carat is a unit of weight used for measuring precious stones and gold, while caret is a symbol used for indicating an insertion or correction in text.
  • Carat is associated with the value and quality of precious materials, while caret is associated with editing and proofreading.
  • The two words have different origins and meanings, and are not related to each other in any way.
Communicate naturally with Engram AI proofreader

What is the definition of “carat” and “caret”?

Carat
  • A unit of weight used for measuring precious stones, equivalent to 200 milligrams.
  • It is also used to measure the purity of gold, with 24-carat gold being the purest.
Caret
  • A symbol (^) used to indicate where something is to be added or inserted into a text.
  • It is also used in proofreading to indicate where a correction should be made.

Which is the more popular variant on the Internet?

“Carat” is the more popular variant on the web.
More popular
Carat
40,100,000 results on the web
Examples
  1. She wore a diamond ring with a five-carat stone in it.
  2. The price of the necklace depends on the carat of the gemstones.
  3. The jeweler informed me that the diamond was a 0.5 carat.
Caret
28,600,000 results on the web
Examples
  1. I corrected the mistake in the copy with a caret in between the words.
  2. The proofreader marked the error in the document with a caret and a note.
  3. The editor left a caret indicating where I should insert the missing word.
Want to express yourself confidently?
Engram AI proofreader helps you
communicate naturally
An illustration of a person writing freely on their laptop, using Engram.An illustration of a person writing freely on their laptop, using Engram.

Related articles