Which to use
“gro” is an adjective and “grown” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #42,164
- “gro” frequency rank
- #2,158
- “grown” frequency rank
- 44322
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | gro | grown |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Disgusting, unpleasant; gross. | past participle of grow |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set gro and grown apart are highlighted. They share 3 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: gro is /ˈɡrəʊ/ while grown is /ɡɹəʊn/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “gro” sits inside “grown”, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 44322, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
gro is recorded at frequency rank #42,164, classified as anadj, pronounced /ˈɡrəʊ/. grown is at rank #2,158, tagged as averb, pronounced /ɡɹəʊn/.
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 44322, this pair ranks #231,713 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of gro vs grown
Shared letters: gor. Private to "gro": -. Private to "grown": nw.
"gro" · 3 letters · shape CCV · "grown" · 5 letters · shape CCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- grown ← ggrown · gorwn · gronw · grownn · growwn · grrown · grwon · rgown
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "gro" and "grown" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "gro" or "grown"?
Remembering gro vs grown
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “gro”; for a verb, it's “grown”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “gro” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable