Which to use
“consisted” and “consulted” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #8,133
- “consisted” frequency rank
- #12,395
- “consulted” frequency rank
- 20528
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | consisted | consulted |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | simple past and past participle of consist | simple past and past participle of consult |
Where the eye mixes consisted and consulted
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between consisted and consulted
A purely visual mix-up. consisted (/kənˈsɪstɪd/) and consulted (/kənˈsʌltɪd/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 20528, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
consisted is recorded at frequency rank #8,133, classified as averb, pronounced /kənˈsɪstɪd/. consulted is at rank #12,395, tagged as averb, pronounced /kənˈsʌltɪd/.
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 20528, this pair ranks #430,504 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of consisted vs consulted
Shared letters: cdenost. Private to "consisted": i. Private to "consulted": lu.
"consisted" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC · "consulted" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "consisted" and "consulted" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "consisted" or "consulted"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "consisted" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "consulted" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #430,504 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "consisted" and "consulted" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "consented vs consulted". 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 #430,504 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.