exaltvsexertWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“exalt” and “exert” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#47,049
“exalt” frequency rank
#18,073
“exert” frequency rank
65122
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature exalt exert
Definition To honor; to hold in high esteem; to praise or worship. To make use of, to apply, especially of something non-material; to bring to bear.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set exalt and exert apart are highlighted. They share 3 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch
exalt
5 ch
exert

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. exalt (/ɪɡˈzɒlt/) and exert (/ɪɡˈzɝt/) 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 65122, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

exalt is recorded at frequency rank #47,049, classified as averb, pronounced /ɪɡˈzɒlt/. exert is at rank #18,073, tagged as averb, pronounced /ɪɡˈzɝt/.

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 65122, this pair ranks #74,317 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of exalt vs exert

Shared letters: etx. Private to "exalt": al. Private to "exert": r.

"exalt" · 5 letters · shape VCVCC  ·  "exert" · 5 letters · shape VCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • exalteaxlt · exallt · exaltt · exatl · exlat · exxalt · xealt
  • exerteexrt · exerrt · exertt · exetr · exret · exxert · xeert

Frequency comparison

exalt#47,049
exert#18,073

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "exalt" and "exert" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/ɪɡˈzɒlt/ versus /ɪɡˈzɝt/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "exalt" or "exert"?
"exert" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #18,073 in our English list, against #47,049 for "exalt". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering exalt vs exert

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “exalt” 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