Which to use
“generally” and “generically” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #1,186
- “generally” frequency rank
- #48,767
- “generically” frequency rank
- 49953
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | generally | generically |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Popularly or widely. | In a generic manner. |
Where the eye mixes generally and generically
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between generally and generically
A purely visual mix-up. generally (/ˈd͡ʒɛn.ɹə.li/) and generically (/dʒəˈnɛɹɪkli/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 49953, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
generally is recorded at frequency rank #1,186, classified as anadv, pronounced /ˈd͡ʒɛn.ɹə.li/. generically is at rank #48,767, tagged as anadv, pronounced /dʒəˈnɛɹɪkli/.
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 49953, this pair ranks #178,714 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of generally vs generically
Shared letters: aeglnry. Private to "generally": -. Private to "generically": ci.
"generally" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCVCCV · "generically" · 11 letters · shape CVCVCVCVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- generally ← egnerally · geenrally · genearlly · generallyy · generaly · generalyl · generlaly · generrally
- generically ← egnerically · geenrically · geneircally · genercially · generiaclly · genericallyy · genericaly · genericalyl
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "generally" and "generically" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary English text, does "generally" or "generically" show up more?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "generally" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "generically" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #178,714 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "generally" and "generically" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "generically vs genetically". 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 #178,714 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.