Which to use
“buzz” is a noun and “buzzed” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #6,550
- “buzz” frequency rank
- #28,143
- “buzzed” frequency rank
- 34693
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | buzz | buzzed |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A continuous humming noise, as of bees; a confused murmur, as of general conversation in low tones. | Slightly intoxicated. |
Where the eye mixes buzz and buzzed
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between buzz and buzzed
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: buzz is /bʌz/ while buzzed is /bʌzd/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “buzz” sits inside “buzzed”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 34693, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
buzz is recorded at frequency rank #6,550, classified as anoun, pronounced /bʌz/. buzzed is at rank #28,143, tagged as anadj, pronounced /bʌzd/.
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 34693, this pair ranks #318,549 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of buzz vs buzzed
Shared letters: buz. Private to "buzz": -. Private to "buzzed": de.
"buzz" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "buzzed" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "buzz" and "buzzed" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "buzz" vs "buzzed" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "buzz" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "buzzed" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #318,549 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "buzz" and "buzzed" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "butted vs buzzed". 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 #318,549 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.