Which to use
“exhaust” is a verb and “exhausted” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #9,467
- “exhaust” frequency rank
- #6,239
- “exhausted” frequency rank
- 15706
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | exhaust | exhausted |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To draw or let out wholly; to drain completely. | Very tired; zonked (out). |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set exhaust and exhausted apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: exhaust is /ɪɡˈzɔːst/ while exhausted is /ɪɡˈzɔːstɪd/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “exhaust” sits inside “exhausted”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 15706, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
exhaust is recorded at frequency rank #9,467, classified as averb, pronounced /ɪɡˈzɔːst/. exhausted is at rank #6,239, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ɪɡˈzɔːstɪd/.
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 15706, this pair ranks #462,319 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of exhaust vs exhausted
Shared letters: aehstux. Private to "exhaust": -. Private to "exhausted": d.
"exhaust" · 7 letters · shape VCCVVCC · "exhausted" · 9 letters · shape VCCVVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "exhaust" and "exhausted" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "exhaust" or "exhausted"?
Remembering exhaust vs exhausted
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “exhaust”; for an adjective, it's “exhausted”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “exhaust” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable