Which to use
“fixed” and “fused” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #2,042
- “fixed” frequency rank
- #17,147
- “fused” frequency rank
- 19189
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | fixed | fused |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | simple past and past participle of fix | simple past and past participle of fuse |
Where the eye mixes fixed and fused
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses fixed with fused
A purely visual mix-up. fixed (/fɪkst/) and fused (/fjuːzd/) 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 19189, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
fixed is recorded at frequency rank #2,042, classified as averb, pronounced /fɪkst/. fused is at rank #17,147, tagged as averb, pronounced /fjuːzd/.
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 19189, this pair ranks #439,875 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of fixed vs fused
Shared letters: def. Private to "fixed": ix. Private to "fused": su.
"fixed" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC · "fused" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "fixed" and "fused" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "fixed" or "fused"?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "fixed" and "fused" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "fixed" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "fused" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #439,875 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "fixed" and "fused" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "fluted vs fused". 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 #439,875 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.