Which to use
“decreasing” and “depressing” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #11,530
- “decreasing” frequency rank
- #9,162
- “depressing” frequency rank
- 20692
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | decreasing | depressing |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | On the decrease. | Causing depression or sadness. |
Where the eye mixes decreasing and depressing
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses decreasing with depressing
A purely visual mix-up. decreasing (/diˈkɹiːsɪŋ/) and depressing (/dɪˈpɹɛsɪŋ(ɡ)/) 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 20692, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
decreasing is recorded at frequency rank #11,530, classified as anadj, pronounced /diˈkɹiːsɪŋ/. depressing is at rank #9,162, tagged as anadj, pronounced /dɪˈpɹɛsɪŋ(ɡ)/.
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 20692, this pair ranks #429,359 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of decreasing vs depressing
Shared letters: deginrs. Private to "decreasing": ac. Private to "depressing": p.
"decreasing" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVVCVCC · "depressing" · 10 letters · shape CVCCVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- decreasing ← dcereasing · ddecreasing · deccreasing · decerasing · decraesing · decreaisng · decreasign · decreasingg
- depressing ← ddepressing · deperssing · deppressing · depresing · depresisng · depressign · depressingg · depressinng
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "decreasing" and "depressing" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "decreasing" vs "depressing" - which ranks higher?
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 "decreasing" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "depressing" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #429,359 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "decreasing" and "depressing" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "depressant vs depressing". 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 #429,359 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.