Which to use
“recorded” is a verb and “records” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,227
- “recorded” frequency rank
- #1,352
- “records” frequency rank
- 3579
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | recorded | records |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | simple past and past participle of record | plural of record |
Where the eye mixes recorded and records
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between recorded and records
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: recorded is /ɹɪˈkɔːdɪd/ while records is /ˈɹɛkɚdz/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 3579, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
recorded is recorded at frequency rank #2,227, classified as averb, pronounced /ɹɪˈkɔːdɪd/. records is at rank #1,352, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈɹɛkɚdz/.
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 3579, this pair ranks #521,699 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of recorded vs records
Shared letters: cdeor. Private to "recorded": -. Private to "records": s.
"recorded" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC · "records" · 7 letters · shape CVCVCCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "recorded" and "records" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "recorded" or "records"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "recorded" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "records" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #521,699 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "recorded" and "records" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "recorded vs retorted". 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 #521,699 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.