Which to use
“reform” is a noun and “reformed” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,854
- “reform” frequency rank
- #12,842
- “reformed” frequency rank
- 15696
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | reform | reformed |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | The change of something that is defective, broken, inefficient or otherwise negative, in order to correct or improve it | Corrected; amended; restored to purity or excellence; said, specifically, of the whole body of Protestant churches originating in the Reformation, or, in a more restricted sense, of those who separated from Martin Luther on the doctrine of consubstantiation, etc., and carried the Reformation, as they claimed, to a higher point. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set reform and reformed apart are highlighted. They share 6 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: reform is anoun and reformedanadjective. On the page they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “reform” sits inside “reformed”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 15696, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
reform is recorded at frequency rank #2,854, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˌɹiːˈfɔɹm/. reformed is at rank #12,842, tagged as anadj.
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 15696, this pair ranks #462,380 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of reform vs reformed
Shared letters: efmor. Private to "reform": -. Private to "reformed": d.
"reform" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC · "reformed" · 8 letters · shape CVCVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "reform" and "reformed" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "reform" or "reformed"?
Remembering reform vs reformed
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “reform”; for an adjective, it's “reformed”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “reform” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable