# purge vs pursue

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### purge
*verb · IPA /pɜːd͡ʒ/ · frequency rank #13,590*
To clean thoroughly; to rid of impurities; to cleanse.

### pursue
*verb · IPA /pəˈsjuː/ · frequency rank #4,624*
To follow urgently, originally with intent to capture or harm; to chase.

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