indentedvsinventedWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“indented” and “invented” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#44,269
“indented” frequency rank
#5,424
“invented” frequency rank
49693
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature indented invented
Definition Cut in the edge into points or inequalities, like teeth; dented on the surface; jagged; notched; stamped in. fictional, made up, imaginary.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set indented and invented apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
indented
8 ch
invented

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. indented (/ɪnˈdɛntɪd/) and invented (/ɪnˈvɛntɪd/) 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 a single letter - d in “indented” becomes v in “invented”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 49693, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

indented is recorded at frequency rank #44,269, classified as anadj, pronounced /ɪnˈdɛntɪd/. invented is at rank #5,424, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ɪnˈvɛntɪd/.

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 49693, this pair ranks #181,218 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of indented vs invented

Shared letters: deint. Private to "indented": -. Private to "invented": v.

"indented" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC  ·  "invented" · 8 letters · shape VCCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • indentedidnented · inddented · indenetd · indennted · indentde · indentedd · indentted · indetned
  • inventedinevnted · innvented · invenetd · invennted · inventde · inventedd · inventted · invetned

Frequency comparison

indented#44,269
invented#5,424

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "indented" and "invented" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/ɪnˈdɛntɪd/ versus /ɪnˈvɛntɪd/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "indented" or "invented"?
"invented" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,424 in our English list, against #44,269 for "indented". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering indented vs invented

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “indented” 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 FrequencyWords open word-frequency list