Which to use
“Progression” is a noun and “progressiv” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #25,715
- “Progression” frequency rank
- #31,224
- “progressiv” frequency rank
- 56939
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Progression | progressiv |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Zunahme, Steigerung, Fortschreiten | Fortschritt zeigend, auf Fortschritt ausgerichtet; sich weiterentwickelnd |
Where the eye mixes Progression and progressiv
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between Progression and progressiv
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: Progression is [pʁoɡʁɛˈsi̯oːn] while progressiv is [pʁoɡʁɛˈsiːf]. 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 adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 56939, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
Progression is recorded at frequency rank #25,715, classified as anoun, pronounced [pʁoɡʁɛˈsi̯oːn]. progressiv is at rank #31,224, tagged as anadj, pronounced [pʁoɡʁɛˈsiːf].
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 56939, this pair ranks #920,825 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of Progression vs progressiv
Shared letters: egioprs. Private to "Progression": n. Private to "progressiv": v.
"Progression" · 11 letters · shape CCVCCVCCVVC · "progressiv" · 10 letters · shape CCVCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- Progression ← porgression · pprogression · prgoression · progerssion · proggression · progresion · progresison · progressino
- progressiv ← porgressiv · pprogressiv · prgoressiv · progerssiv · proggressiv · progresisv · progresiv · progressivv
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "Progression" for "progressiv" ever safe?
Which is more common, "Progression" or "progressiv"?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "Progression" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "progressiv" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #920,825 of 2,006,359 scored German confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "Progression" and "progressiv" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "profession vs Progression". 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 #920,825 of 2,006,359 scored German pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.