Which to use
“rotten” is an adjective and “rotting” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #9,531
- “rotten” frequency rank
- #18,684
- “rotting” frequency rank
- 28215
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | rotten | rotting |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Of perishable items, overridden with bacteria and other infectious agents. | present participle and gerund of rot |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set rotten and rotting apart are highlighted. They share 5 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: rotten is anadjective and rottingaverb. On the page they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 28215, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
rotten is recorded at frequency rank #9,531, classified as anadj, pronounced /ˈɹɒtn̩/. rotting is at rank #18,684, tagged as averb.
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 28215, this pair ranks #372,817 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of rotten vs rotting
Shared letters: nort. Private to "rotten": e. Private to "rotting": gi.
"rotten" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "rotting" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "rotten" and "rotting" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "rotten" or "rotting"?
Remembering rotten vs rotting
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “rotten”; for a verb, it's “rotting”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “rotten” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable