Which to use
“avenge” is a verb and “average” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #20,846
- “avenge” frequency rank
- #704
- “average” frequency rank
- 21550
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | avenge | average |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To take vengeance (for); to exact satisfaction for by punishing the injuring party; to vindicate by inflicting pain or evil on a wrongdoer. | Any measure of central tendency, especially any mean, the median, or the mode. |
Where the eye mixes avenge and average
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: avenge vs average
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: avenge is /əˈvɛnd͡ʒ/ while average is /ˈæv.(ə.)ɹɪd͡ʒ/. 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 (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 21550, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
avenge is recorded at frequency rank #20,846, classified as averb, pronounced /əˈvɛnd͡ʒ/. average is at rank #704, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈæv.(ə.)ɹɪd͡ʒ/.
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 21550, this pair ranks #423,063 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of avenge vs average
Shared letters: aegv. Private to "avenge": n. Private to "average": r.
"avenge" · 6 letters · shape VCVCCV · "average" · 7 letters · shape VCVCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "avenge" and "average" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "avenge" vs "average" - 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 "avenge" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "average" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #423,063 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "avenge" and "average" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "avenge vs avenged". 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 #423,063 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.