Which to use
“flickering” is an adjective and “flicking” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #29,274
- “flickering” frequency rank
- #33,244
- “flicking” frequency rank
- 62518
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | flickering | flicking |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | shining unsteadily or varying rapidly in brightness (referring to a light or a source of light) | present participle and gerund of flick |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set flickering and flicking apart are highlighted. They share 8 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: flickering is /ˈflɪkəɹɪŋ/ while flicking is /ˈflɪkɪŋ/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 62518, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
flickering is recorded at frequency rank #29,274, classified as anadj, pronounced /ˈflɪkəɹɪŋ/. flicking is at rank #33,244, tagged as averb, pronounced /ˈflɪkɪŋ/.
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 62518, this pair ranks #88,042 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of flickering vs flicking
Shared letters: cfgikln. Private to "flickering": er. Private to "flicking": -.
"flickering" · 10 letters · shape CCVCCVCVCC · "flicking" · 8 letters · shape CCVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- flickering ← fflickering · filckering · flcikering · flicckering · flicekring · flickeirng · flickerign · flickeringg
- flicking ← fflicking · filcking · flciking · fliccking · flicikng · flickign · flickingg · flickinng
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "flickering" and "flicking" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "flickering" or "flicking"?
Remembering flickering vs flicking
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “flickering”; for a verb, it's “flicking”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “flickering” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable