convictvsconvictedWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“convict” and “convicted” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#13,693
“convict” frequency rank
#5,113
“convicted” frequency rank
18806
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature convict convicted
Definition To find guilty, as a result of legal proceedings, or (informal) in a moral sense. simple past and past participle of convict

Where the eye mixes convict and convicted

Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.

7 ch
convict
9 ch
convicted

Look-alike desk: convict vs convicted

A purely visual mix-up. convict (/kənˈvɪkt/) and convicted (/kənˈvɪktɪd/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “convict” sits inside “convicted”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 18806, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

convict is recorded at frequency rank #13,693, classified as averb, pronounced /kənˈvɪkt/. convicted is at rank #5,113, tagged as averb, pronounced /kənˈvɪktɪd/.

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 18806, this pair ranks #442,430 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of convict vs convicted

Shared letters: cinotv. Private to "convict": -. Private to "convicted": de.

"convict" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC  ·  "convicted" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • convictcconvict · cnovict · conivct · connvict · convcit · convicct · convictt · convitc
  • convictedcconvicted · cnovicted · conivcted · connvicted · convcited · conviccted · convicetd · convictde

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "convict" and "convicted" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/kənˈvɪkt/ versus /kənˈvɪktɪd/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "convict" or "convicted"?
"convicted" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,113 in our English list, against #13,693 for "convict". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

What to do next

Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.

  • Full dictionary entry for "convict" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
  • Full dictionary entry for "convicted" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
  • This pair ranks #442,430 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
  • "convict" and "convicted" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "convent vs convict". 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 #442,430 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list