Which to use
“decrees” and “degrees” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #26,393
- “decrees” frequency rank
- #2,784
- “degrees” frequency rank
- 29177
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | decrees | degrees |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of decree | plural of degree |
Where the eye mixes decrees and degrees
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses decrees with degrees
A purely visual mix-up. decrees (/dəˈkɹiz/) and degrees (/dɪˈɡɹiːz/) 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 a single letter - c in “decrees” becomes g in “degrees”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 29177, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
decrees is recorded at frequency rank #26,393, classified as anoun, pronounced /dəˈkɹiz/. degrees is at rank #2,784, tagged as anoun, pronounced /dɪˈɡɹiːz/.
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 29177, this pair ranks #365,188 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of decrees vs degrees
Shared letters: ders. Private to "decrees": c. Private to "degrees": g.
"decrees" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVVC · "degrees" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "decrees" and "degrees" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "decrees" vs "degrees" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "decrees" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "degrees" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #365,188 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "decrees" and "degrees" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "decrees vs depress". 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 #365,188 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.