divergingvsdivertingWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: diverging is a noun, diverting is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

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

#41,089
“diverging” frequency rank
#26,066
“diverting” frequency rank
67155
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature diverging diverting
Definition divergence Amusing, distracting.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set diverging and diverting apart are highlighted. They share 8 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

9 ch
diverging
9 ch
diverting

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: diverging is anoun and divertinganadjective. On the page they differ by a single letter - g in “diverging” becomes t in “diverting”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 67155, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

diverging is recorded at frequency rank #41,089, classified as anoun. diverting is at rank #26,066, tagged as anadj.

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 67155, this pair ranks #64,649 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of diverging vs diverting

Shared letters: deginrv. Private to "diverging": -. Private to "diverting": t.

"diverging" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVCC  ·  "diverting" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • divergingddiverging · dievrging · divegring · divergging · divergign · divergingg · diverginng · divergnig
  • divertingddiverting · dievrting · diveritng · diverrting · divertign · divertingg · divertinng · divertnig

Frequency comparison

diverging#41,089
diverting#26,066

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "diverging" and "diverting" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "diverging" is a noun and "diverting" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "diverging" or "diverting"?
"diverting" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #26,066 in our English list, against #41,089 for "diverging". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering diverging vs diverting

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “diverging”; for an adjective, it's “diverting”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “diverging” 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