Which to use
“devalue” and “devolve” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #44,161
- “devalue” frequency rank
- #37,886
- “devolve” frequency rank
- 82047
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | devalue | devolve |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To lower or remove the value of something. | To be inherited by someone else; to pass down upon the next person in a succession, especially through failure or loss of an earlier holder. |
Where the eye mixes devalue and devolve
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses devalue with devolve
A purely visual mix-up. devalue (/diːˈvæljuː/) and devolve (/dɪˈvɒɫv/) 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 82047, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
devalue is recorded at frequency rank #44,161, classified as averb, pronounced /diːˈvæljuː/. devolve is at rank #37,886, tagged as averb, pronounced /dɪˈvɒɫv/.
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 82047, this pair ranks #16,512 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of devalue vs devolve
Shared letters: delv. Private to "devalue": au. Private to "devolve": o.
"devalue" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCVV · "devolve" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "devalue" and "devolve" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "devalue" or "devolve"?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "devalue" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "devolve" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #16,512 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "devalue" and "devolve" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "devolve vs devotee". 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 #16,512 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.