Which to use
“fatality” and “futility” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #23,537
- “fatality” frequency rank
- #30,433
- “futility” frequency rank
- 53970
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fatality | futility |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | The state proceeding from destiny; invincible necessity, superior to, and independent of, free and rational control. | The quality of being futile or useless. |
Where the eye mixes fatality and futility
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between fatality and futility
A purely visual mix-up. fatality (/feɪˈtælɪti/) and futility (/fjuːˈtɪlɪti/) 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 53970, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fatality is recorded at frequency rank #23,537, classified as anoun, pronounced /feɪˈtælɪti/. futility is at rank #30,433, tagged as anoun, pronounced /fjuːˈtɪlɪti/.
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 53970, this pair ranks #144,748 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of fatality vs futility
Shared letters: filty. Private to "fatality": a. Private to "futility": u.
"fatality" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCVCV · "futility" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "fatality" for "futility" ever safe?
Which is more common, "fatality" or "futility"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "fatality" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "futility" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #144,748 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "fatality" and "futility" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "fatality vs finality". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #144,748 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.