Which to use
“graded” is a verb and “grained” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #16,034
- “graded” frequency rank
- #32,417
- “grained” frequency rank
- 48451
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | graded | grained |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | simple past and past participle of grade | Having a grain or grains. |
Letter map: graded vs grained
Shared letters muted; letters that set graded and grained apart highlighted. Shared run: 5.
Grammar separator: graded vs grained
Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: graded is averb and grainedanadjective. On the page they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 48451, 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/. grained is at rank #32,417, tagged as anadj.
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 48451, this pair ranks #192,948 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of graded vs grained
Shared letters: adegr. Private to "graded": -. Private to "grained": in.
"graded" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC · "grained" · 7 letters · shape CCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "graded" and "grained" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "graded" vs "grained" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Done with this confusable. These links stay specific to "graded" and "grained".
- Full dictionary entry for "graded" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "grained" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #192,948 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "graded" and "grained" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "grained vs groaned". 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 #192,948 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.