Which to use
“fill” is a verb and “full” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,297
- “fill” frequency rank
- #262
- “full” frequency rank
- 2559
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fill | full |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To make full | Containing the maximum possible amount that can fit in the space available. |
Where the eye mixes fill and full
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: fill vs full
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: fill is /fɪl/ while full is /fʊl/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - i in “fill” becomes u in “full”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 2559, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fill is recorded at frequency rank #2,297, classified as averb, pronounced /fɪl/. full is at rank #262, tagged as anadj, pronounced /fʊl/.
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 2559, this pair ranks #524,662 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of fill vs full
Shared letters: fl. Private to "fill": i. Private to "full": u.
"fill" · 4 letters · shape CVCC · "full" · 4 letters · shape CVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "fill" and "full" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "fill" vs "full" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "fill" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "full" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #524,662 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "fill" and "full" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "fie vs fill". 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 #524,662 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.