Which to use
“approximate” is an adjective and “approximately” is an adverb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #12,181
- “approximate” frequency rank
- #2,281
- “approximately” frequency rank
- 14462
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | approximate | approximately |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Approaching; proximate; nearly resembling. | Imprecise but close to in quantity or amount. |
Where the eye mixes approximate and approximately
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 11 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between approximate and approximately
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: approximate is /əˈpɹɒk.sɪ.mət/ while approximately is /əˈpɹɑk.sɪ.mət.li/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “approximate” sits inside “approximately”, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs adverb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 14462, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
approximate is recorded at frequency rank #12,181, classified as anadj, pronounced /əˈpɹɒk.sɪ.mət/. approximately is at rank #2,281, tagged as anadv, pronounced /əˈpɹɑk.sɪ.mət.li/.
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 14462, this pair ranks #469,918 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of approximate vs approximately
Shared letters: aeimoprtx. Private to "approximate": -. Private to "approximately": ly.
"approximate" · 11 letters · shape VCCCVCVCVCV · "approximately" · 13 letters · shape VCCCVCVCVCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- approximate ← apporximate · approixmate · approxiamte · approximaet · approximatte · approximmate · approximtae · approxmiate
- approximately ← apporximately · approixmately · approxiamtely · approximaetly · approximatelly · approximatelyy · approximateyl · approximatley
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "approximate" and "approximately" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "approximate" vs "approximately" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "approximate" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "approximately" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #469,918 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- 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 #469,918 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.