Which to use
“regulator” is a noun and “regulatory” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #12,668
- “regulator” frequency rank
- #4,887
- “regulatory” frequency rank
- 17555
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | regulator | regulatory |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A device that controls or limits something. | Of or pertaining to regulation. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set regulator and regulatory apart are highlighted. They share 9 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: regulator is /ˈɹɛɡ.jʊ.leɪ.tə/ while regulatory is /ˈɹɛɡ.jʊ.lə.t(ɔː.)ɹi/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “regulator” sits inside “regulatory”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 17555, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
regulator is recorded at frequency rank #12,668, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈɹɛɡ.jʊ.leɪ.tə/. regulatory is at rank #4,887, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ˈɹɛɡ.jʊ.lə.t(ɔː.)ɹi/.
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 17555, this pair ranks #450,639 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of regulator vs regulatory
Shared letters: aeglortu. Private to "regulator": -. Private to "regulatory": y.
"regulator" · 9 letters · shape CVCVCVCVC · "regulatory" · 10 letters · shape CVCVCVCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- regulator ← ergulator · reggulator · regluator · regualtor · regulaotr · regulatorr · regulatro · regulattor
- regulatory ← ergulatory · reggulatory · regluatory · regualtory · regulaotry · regulatorry · regulatoryy · regulatoyr
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "regulator" and "regulatory" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "regulator" or "regulatory"?
Remembering regulator vs regulatory
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a noun, it's “regulator”; for an adjective, it's “regulatory”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “regulator” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable