Which to use
“enhance” is a verb and “enhanced” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #6,683
- “enhance” frequency rank
- #6,237
- “enhanced” frequency rank
- 12920
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | enhance | enhanced |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To lift, raise up. | In a version or form that has been improved or made better than some other standard form. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set enhance and enhanced apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: enhance is averb and enhancedanadjective. On the page they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “enhance” sits inside “enhanced”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 12920, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
enhance is recorded at frequency rank #6,683, classified as averb, pronounced /ɪnˈhɑːns/. enhanced is at rank #6,237, 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 12920, this pair ranks #478,784 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of enhance vs enhanced
Shared letters: acehn. Private to "enhance": -. Private to "enhanced": d.
"enhance" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCCV · "enhanced" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "enhance" and "enhanced" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "enhance" or "enhanced"?
Remembering enhance vs enhanced
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “enhance”; for an adjective, it's “enhanced”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “enhance” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable