Which to use
“avid” is an adjective and “avoid” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #14,889
- “avid” frequency rank
- #1,416
- “avoid” frequency rank
- 16305
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | avid | avoid |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Enthusiastic; keen; eager; showing great interest in something or desire to do something. | To try not to meet or communicate with (a person); to shun. |
Where the eye mixes avid and avoid
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses avid with avoid
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: avid is /ˈæv.ɪd/ while avoid is /əˈvɔɪd/. 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 (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 16305, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
avid is recorded at frequency rank #14,889, classified as anadj, pronounced /ˈæv.ɪd/. avoid is at rank #1,416, tagged as averb, pronounced /əˈvɔɪd/.
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 16305, this pair ranks #458,607 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of avid vs avoid
Shared letters: adiv. Private to "avid": -. Private to "avoid": o.
"avid" · 4 letters · shape VCVC · "avoid" · 5 letters · shape VCVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "avid" and "avoid" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary English text, does "avid" or "avoid" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "avid" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "avoid" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #458,607 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "avid" and "avoid" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "Advil vs avid". 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 #458,607 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.