condensatevscondenseWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: condensate is a noun, condense is a verb, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“condensate” is a noun and “condense” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#38,787
“condensate” frequency rank
#41,059
“condense” frequency rank
79846
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature condensate condense
Definition A liquid that is the product of condensation of a gas, i.e. of steam. To concentrate toward the essence by making more close, compact, or dense, thereby decreasing size or volume.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set condensate and condense apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

10 ch
condensate
8 ch
condense

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: condensate is anoun and condenseaverb. On the page they differ by 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 79846, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

condensate is recorded at frequency rank #38,787, classified as anoun. condense is at rank #41,059, tagged as averb, pronounced /kənˈdɛns/.

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 79846, this pair ranks #21,140 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of condensate vs condense

Shared letters: cdenos. Private to "condensate": at. Private to "condense": -.

"condensate" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVCCVCV  ·  "condense" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • condensateccondensate · cnodensate · codnensate · conddensate · condenaste · condennsate · condensaet · condensatte
  • condenseccondense · cnodense · codnense · conddense · condenes · condennse · condensse · condesne

Frequency comparison

condensate#38,787
condense#41,059

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "condensate" and "condense" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "condensate" is a noun and "condense" a verb, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "condensate" or "condense"?
"condensate" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #38,787 in our English list, against #41,059 for "condense". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering condensate vs condense

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “condensate”; for a verb, it's “condense”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “condensate” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list