# poised vs poisoned

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### poised
*adjective · IPA /pɔɪzd/ · frequency rank #16,560*
Possessing poise, having self-confidence.

### poisoned
*adjective · IPA /ˈpɔɪzn̩d/ · frequency rank #13,402*
Killed, paralysed, or harmed by receiving a dose of poison.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/vs/poised-vs-poisoned