Which to use
“graded” is a verb and “grades” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #16,034
- “graded” frequency rank
- #4,452
- “grades” frequency rank
- 20486
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | graded | grades |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | simple past and past participle of grade | plural of grade |
Where the eye mixes graded and grades
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between graded and grades
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: graded is /ˈɡɹeɪdɪd/ while grades is /ɡɹeɪdz/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - d in “graded” becomes s in “grades”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 20486, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
graded is recorded at frequency rank #16,034, classified as averb, pronounced /ˈɡɹeɪdɪd/. grades is at rank #4,452, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ɡɹeɪdz/.
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 20486, this pair ranks #430,749 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of graded vs grades
Shared letters: adegr. Private to "graded": -. Private to "grades": s.
"graded" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC · "grades" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "graded" and "grades" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "graded" vs "grades" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "graded" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "grades" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #430,749 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "graded" and "grades" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "glades vs graded". 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 #430,749 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.