goddamvsgoddamnWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: goddam is a noun, goddamn is an intj, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“goddam” is a noun and “goddamn” is an intj - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#42,160
“goddam” frequency rank
#7,232
“goddamn” frequency rank
49392
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature goddam goddamn
Definition An English person, from the perspective of a French person or in the context of French history, originating during the Hundred Years' War. An expression of anger, surprise, intense excitement or frustration.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set goddam and goddamn apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

6 ch
goddam
7 ch
goddamn

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: goddam is anoun and goddamnanintj. On the page they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “goddam” sits inside “goddamn”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 49392, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

goddam is recorded at frequency rank #42,160, classified as anoun. goddamn is at rank #7,232, tagged as anintj, pronounced /ˌɡɒdˈdæm/.

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 49392, this pair ranks #184,066 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of goddam vs goddamn

Shared letters: adgmo. Private to "goddam": -. Private to "goddamn": n.

"goddam" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC  ·  "goddamn" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • goddamgdodam · ggoddam · godadm · godam · goddamm · goddma · ogddam
  • goddamngdodamn · ggoddamn · godadmn · godamn · goddammn · goddamnn · goddanm · goddman

Frequency comparison

goddam#42,160
goddamn#7,232

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "goddam" and "goddamn" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "goddam" is a noun and "goddamn" an intj, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "goddam" or "goddamn"?
"goddamn" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #7,232 in our English list, against #42,160 for "goddam". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering goddam vs goddamn

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “goddam”; for an intj, it's “goddamn”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “goddam” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list