Which to use
“precise” is an adjective and “precisely” is an adverb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #5,825
- “precise” frequency rank
- #5,154
- “precisely” frequency rank
- 10979
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | precise | precisely |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Both exact and accurate. | In a precise manner; exactly. |
Where the eye mixes precise and precisely
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses precise with precisely
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: precise is /pɹɪˈsaɪs/ while precisely is /pɹɪˈsaɪs.li/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “precise” sits inside “precisely”, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs adverb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 10979, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
precise is recorded at frequency rank #5,825, classified as anadj, pronounced /pɹɪˈsaɪs/. precisely is at rank #5,154, tagged as anadv, pronounced /pɹɪˈsaɪs.li/.
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 10979, this pair ranks #489,508 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of precise vs precisely
Shared letters: ceiprs. Private to "precise": -. Private to "precisely": ly.
"precise" · 7 letters · shape CCVCVCV · "precisely" · 9 letters · shape CCVCVCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "precise" and "precisely" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "precise" vs "precisely" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "precise" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "precisely" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #489,508 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "precise" and "precisely" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "precede vs precise". 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 #489,508 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.