intensityvsintercityWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: intensity is a noun, intercity is an adjective, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“intensity” is a noun and “intercity” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#5,697
“intensity” frequency rank
#43,720
“intercity” frequency rank
49417
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature intensity intercity
Definition The quality of being intense. Between cities; connecting cities with other cities.

Where the spellings diverge

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

9 ch
intensity
9 ch
intercity

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: intensity is anoun and intercityanadjective. On the page they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 49417, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

intensity is recorded at frequency rank #5,697, classified as anoun, pronounced /ɪnˈtɛnsɪti/. intercity is at rank #43,720, 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 49417, this pair ranks #183,833 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of intensity vs intercity

Shared letters: einty. Private to "intensity": s. Private to "intercity": cr.

"intensity" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCCVCV  ·  "intercity" · 9 letters · shape VCCVCCVCV

Known mistypes of this pair

  • intensityinetnsity · inntensity · intenisty · intennsity · intensitty · intensityy · intensiyt · intenssity
  • intercityinetrcity · inntercity · intecrity · interccity · intercitty · intercityy · interciyt · interctiy

Frequency comparison

intensity#5,697
intercity#43,720

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "intensity" and "intercity" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "intensity" is a noun and "intercity" an adjective, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "intensity" or "intercity"?
"intensity" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #5,697 in our English list, against #43,720 for "intercity". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering intensity vs intercity

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “intensity”; for an adjective, it's “intercity”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “intensity” 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