Which to use
“checking” is a verb and “clocking” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #3,413
- “checking” frequency rank
- #33,986
- “clocking” frequency rank
- 37399
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | checking | clocking |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | present participle and gerund of check | A time measurement made according to a clock. |
Letter map: checking vs clocking
Shared letters muted; letters that set checking and clocking apart highlighted. Shared run: 6.
Role in the sentence - checking and clocking
Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: checking is averb and clockinganoun. On the page they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 37399, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
checking is recorded at frequency rank #3,413, classified as averb, pronounced /ˈt͡ʃɛkɪŋ/. clocking is at rank #33,986, tagged as anoun.
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 37399, this pair ranks #294,894 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of checking vs clocking
Shared letters: cgikn. Private to "checking": eh. Private to "clocking": lo.
"checking" · 8 letters · shape CCVCCVCC · "clocking" · 8 letters · shape CCVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "checking" for "clocking" ever safe?
In ordinary English text, does "checking" or "clocking" show up more?
What to do next
Done with this confusable. These links stay specific to "checking" and "clocking".
- Full dictionary entry for "checking" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "clocking" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #294,894 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "checking" and "clocking" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "clocking vs clouding". 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 #294,894 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.