Which to use
“decide” and “derive” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,715
- “decide” frequency rank
- #14,737
- “derive” frequency rank
- 16452
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | decide | derive |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To resolve (a contest, problem, dispute, etc.); to choose, determine, or settle. | To obtain or receive (something) from something else. |
Where the eye mixes decide and derive
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 4 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses decide with derive
A purely visual mix-up. decide (/dɪˈsaɪd/) and derive (/dɪˈɹaɪv/) 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 16452, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
decide is recorded at frequency rank #1,715, classified as averb, pronounced /dɪˈsaɪd/. derive is at rank #14,737, tagged as averb, pronounced /dɪˈɹaɪv/.
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 16452, this pair ranks #457,656 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of decide vs derive
Shared letters: dei. Private to "decide": c. Private to "derive": rv.
"decide" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV · "derive" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "decide" and "derive" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary English text, does "decide" or "derive" show up more?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "decide" and "derive" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "decide" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "derive" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #457,656 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "decide" and "derive" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "defile vs derive". 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 #457,656 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.