Which to use
“precede” and “preyed” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #34,642
- “precede” frequency rank
- #41,823
- “preyed” frequency rank
- 76465
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | precede | preyed |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To go before, go in front of. | simple past and past participle of prey |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set precede and preyed apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
A purely visual mix-up. precede (/pɹɪˈsiːd/) and preyed (/pɹeɪd/) 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 76465, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
precede is recorded at frequency rank #34,642, classified as averb, pronounced /pɹɪˈsiːd/. preyed is at rank #41,823, tagged as averb, pronounced /pɹeɪd/.
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 76465, this pair ranks #30,040 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of precede vs preyed
Shared letters: depr. Private to "precede": c. Private to "preyed": y.
"precede" · 7 letters · shape CCVCVCV · "preyed" · 6 letters · shape CCVVVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "precede" and "preyed" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "precede" or "preyed"?
Remembering precede vs preyed
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “precede” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable