Which to use
“condense” is a verb and “condenser” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #41,059
- “condense” frequency rank
- #34,444
- “condenser” frequency rank
- 75503
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | condense | condenser |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To concentrate toward the essence by making more close, compact, or dense, thereby decreasing size or volume. | A device designed to condense a gas into a liquid, either as part of a still, steam engine, refrigerator or similar machine. |
Where the eye mixes condense and condenser
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between condense and condenser
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: condense is /kənˈdɛns/ while condenser is /ˈkʰəndɛnsɚ/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “condense” sits inside “condenser”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 75503, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
condense is recorded at frequency rank #41,059, classified as averb, pronounced /kənˈdɛns/. condenser is at rank #34,444, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈkʰəndɛnsɚ/.
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 75503, this pair ranks #32,903 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of condense vs condenser
Shared letters: cdenos. Private to "condense": -. Private to "condenser": r.
"condense" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCCV · "condenser" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "condense" and "condenser" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "condense" or "condenser"?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "condense" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "condenser" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #32,903 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "condense" and "condenser" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "condenser vs convener". 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 #32,903 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.