Which to use
“criticise” is a verb and “criticism” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #22,337
- “criticise” frequency rank
- #3,051
- “criticism” frequency rank
- 25388
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | criticise | criticism |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Non-Oxford British English standard spelling of criticize. | The act of criticising; a critical judgment passed or expressed. |
Letter map: criticise vs criticism
Shared letters muted; letters that set criticise and criticism apart highlighted. Shared run: 8. criticise (CCVCVCVCV) and criticism (CCVCVCVCC) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Grammar separator: criticise vs criticism
Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: criticise is averb and criticismanoun. On the page they differ by a single letter - e in “criticise” becomes m in “criticism”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 25388, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
criticise is recorded at frequency rank #22,337, classified as averb. criticism is at rank #3,051, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈkɹɪtɪsɪzm̩/.
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 25388, this pair ranks #394,653 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of criticise vs criticism
Shared letters: cirst. Private to "criticise": e. Private to "criticism": m.
"criticise" · 9 letters · shape CCVCVCVCV · "criticism" · 9 letters · shape CCVCVCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "criticise" for "criticism" ever safe?
Which is more common, "criticise" or "criticism"?
After this comparison
Pair "criticise" vs "criticism" is on the table, pick a follow-up below.
- Full dictionary entry for "criticise" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "criticism" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #394,653 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "criticise" and "criticism" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "criticise vs criticize". 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 #394,653 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.