dentedvsdentsWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: dented is a adjective, dents is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“dented” is an adjective and “dents” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#38,361
“dented” frequency rank
#35,681
“dents” frequency rank
74042
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature dented dents
Definition Having teeth of a specified colour. plural of dent

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set dented and dents apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
dented
5 ch
dents

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: dented is anadjective and dentsanoun. On the page they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 74042, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

dented is recorded at frequency rank #38,361, classified as anadj. dents is at rank #35,681, tagged as anoun, pronounced /dɛnts/.

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 74042, this pair ranks #37,566 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of dented vs dents

Shared letters: dent. Private to "dented": -. Private to "dents": s.

"dented" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "dents" · 5 letters · shape CVCCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • dentedddented · denetd · dennted · dentde · dentedd · dentted · detned · dneted
  • dentsddents · dennts · denst · dentss · dentts · detns · dnets · ednts

Frequency comparison

dented#38,361
dents#35,681

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "dented" and "dents" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "dented" is an adjective and "dents" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "dented" or "dents"?
"dents" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #35,681 in our English list, against #38,361 for "dented". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering dented vs dents

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “dented”; for a noun, it's “dents”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “dented” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

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

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list