Which to use
“realise” and “realized” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #4,625
- “realise” frequency rank
- #2,550
- “realized” frequency rank
- 7175
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | realise | realized |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Non-Oxford British standard spelling of realize. | simple past and past participle of realize |
Letter map: realise vs realized
Shared letters muted; letters that set realise and realized apart highlighted. Shared run: 6. realise runs 7 letters (CVVCVCV) against realized's 8 (CVVCVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Spelling & dictionary notes on realise vs realized
realise and realized are indexed as a confusable English pair. We have no recorded pronunciation or part of speech for both members, so the spelling overlap is what we can show you: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 7175, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
realise is recorded at frequency rank #4,625, classified as averb. realized is at rank #2,550, tagged as averb, pronounced /ˈɹɪə.laɪzd/.
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 7175, this pair ranks #508,246 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of realise vs realized
Shared letters: aeilr. Private to "realise": s. Private to "realized": dz.
"realise" · 7 letters · shape CVVCVCV · "realized" · 8 letters · shape CVVCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "realise" for "realized" ever safe?
Which is more common, "realise" or "realized"?
Useful next steps
Done with this confusable. These links stay specific to "realise" and "realized".
- Full dictionary entry for "realise" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "realized" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #508,246 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "realise" and "realized" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "readied vs realized". 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 #508,246 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.