Which to use
“proved” and “provoked” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,126
- “proved” frequency rank
- #14,819
- “provoked” frequency rank
- 17945
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | proved | provoked |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | simple past and past participle of prove | simple past and past participle of provoke |
Where the eye mixes proved and provoked
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence. proved runs 6 letters (CCVCVC) against provoked's 8 (CCVCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Why the eye confuses proved with provoked
A purely visual mix-up. proved (/ˈpɹuːvd/) and provoked (/pɹəˈvoʊkt/) 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 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 17945, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
proved is recorded at frequency rank #3,126, classified as averb, pronounced /ˈpɹuːvd/. provoked is at rank #14,819, tagged as averb, pronounced /pɹəˈvoʊkt/.
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 17945, this pair ranks #448,149 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of proved vs provoked
Shared letters: deoprv. Private to "proved": -. Private to "provoked": k.
"proved" · 6 letters · shape CCVCVC · "provoked" · 8 letters · shape CCVCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "proved" and "provoked" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "proved" vs "provoked" - which ranks higher?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "proved" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "provoked" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #448,149 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "proved" and "provoked" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "proved vs pruned". 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 #448,149 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.