Which to use
“narrow” is an adjective and “narrower” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #3,707
- “narrow” frequency rank
- #19,913
- “narrower” frequency rank
- 23620
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | narrow | narrower |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Having a small width; not wide; having opposite edges or sides that are close, especially by comparison to length or depth. | One who, or that which, narrows. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set narrow and narrower apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: narrow is anadjective and narroweranoun. On the page they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “narrow” sits inside “narrower”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 23620, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
narrow is recorded at frequency rank #3,707, classified as anadj, pronounced /ˈnæɹ.əʊ/. narrower is at rank #19,913, tagged as anoun.
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 23620, this pair ranks #407,988 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of narrow vs narrower
Shared letters: anorw. Private to "narrow": -. Private to "narrower": e.
"narrow" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "narrower" · 8 letters · shape CVCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "narrow" and "narrower" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "narrow" or "narrower"?
Remembering narrow vs narrower
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “narrow”; for a noun, it's “narrower”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “narrow” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable