Which to use
“padded” is an adjective and “paddle” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #21,891
- “padded” frequency rank
- #15,239
- “paddle” frequency rank
- 37130
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | padded | paddle |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Having padding. | A two-handed implement consisting of a shaft with one or two blades attached to the end(s) used to propel a canoe, kayak or a small boat. A paddle is unattached to the boat and freely operated with the hands, compared with an oar which is attached to the boat at a pivot point. |
Where the eye mixes padded and paddle
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses padded with paddle
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: padded is /ˈpædɪd/ while paddle is /ˈpædl̩/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 37130, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
padded is recorded at frequency rank #21,891, classified as anadj, pronounced /ˈpædɪd/. paddle is at rank #15,239, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈpædl̩/.
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 37130, this pair ranks #297,138 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of padded vs paddle
Shared letters: adep. Private to "padded": -. Private to "paddle": l.
"padded" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "paddle" · 6 letters · shape CVCCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "padded" and "paddle" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "padded" vs "paddle" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "padded" and "paddle" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "padded" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "paddle" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #297,138 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "padded" and "paddle" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "padded vs pander". 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 #297,138 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.