Dialing or dialling?
Both are forms of dial: dialing is the present participle and gerund of dial, and dialling the present participle and gerund of dial. On its own, dialing is a noun meaning “The act by which a number is dialed”, and dialling a noun meaning “Alternative form of dialing”. In written English (wordfreq, 2021 data) dialing is about 4.1 times as common as dialling.
What is the difference between dialing and dialling?
| dialing | dialling | |
|---|---|---|
| Part of speech | noun, verb | noun, verb |
| Meaning | The act by which a number is dialed The science of measuring time by use of a dial | UKAlternative form of dialing |
| Example | none recorded | none recorded |
| Forms | dialings | diallings |
| Pronunciation | not recorded | not recorded |
| In writing | 1.1 times per million words | about once in every 4 million words |
Sources: dialing and dialling in the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Every current meaning of dialing and dialling
dialing
- 1
The act by which a number is dialed
- 2
The science of measuring time by use of a dial
- 3
A method of surveying, especially in mines, in which the bearings of the courses, or the angles which they make with each other, are determined by means of the circumferentor; the use of a miner's…
dialling
- 1
UKAlternative form of dialing
Source: the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); obsolete, archaic, dialect and rare senses left out.
Which is more common, dialing or dialling?
dialing appears 1.1 times per million words; dialling about once in every 4 million words.
dialing 1.1 times per million wordsdialling about once in every 4 million words
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).