Which to use
“picking” and “pitching” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,383
- “picking” frequency rank
- #10,423
- “pitching” frequency rank
- 13806
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | picking | pitching |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | present participle and gerund of pick | present participle and gerund of pitch |
Where the eye mixes picking and pitching
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses picking with pitching
A purely visual mix-up. picking (/ˈpɪkɪŋ/) and pitching (/ˈpɪt͡ʃ.ɪŋ/) 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 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 13806, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
picking is recorded at frequency rank #3,383, classified as averb, pronounced /ˈpɪkɪŋ/. pitching is at rank #10,423, tagged as averb, pronounced /ˈpɪt͡ʃ.ɪŋ/.
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 13806, this pair ranks #473,736 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of picking vs pitching
Shared letters: cginp. Private to "picking": k. Private to "pitching": ht.
"picking" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC · "pitching" · 8 letters · shape CVCCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "picking" and "pitching" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "picking" vs "pitching" - which ranks higher?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "picking" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "pitching" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #473,736 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "picking" and "pitching" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "piecing vs pitching". 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 #473,736 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.