Which to use
“scalding” is an adjective and “scolding” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #46,758
- “scalding” frequency rank
- #35,500
- “scolding” frequency rank
- 82258
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | scalding | scolding |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Hot enough to burn. | An unloving succession of critical remarks, such as those directed by a parent towards a misbehaving child; an earful; dressing down. |
Letter map: scalding vs scolding
Shared letters muted; letters that set scalding and scolding apart highlighted. Shared run: 7. scalding and scolding follow the identical consonant-vowel pattern (CCVCCVCC). Same shape at a glance is often the real trap, independent of shared letters.
Grammar separator: scalding vs scolding
Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: scalding is anadjective and scoldinganoun. On the page they differ by a single letter - a in “scalding” becomes o in “scolding”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 82258, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
scalding is recorded at frequency rank #46,758, classified as anadj. scolding is at rank #35,500, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈskoʊldɪŋ/.
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 82258, this pair ranks #16,068 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of scalding vs scolding
Shared letters: cdgilns. Private to "scalding": a. Private to "scolding": o.
"scalding" · 8 letters · shape CCVCCVCC · "scolding" · 8 letters · shape CCVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "scalding" and "scolding" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "scalding" or "scolding"?
What to do next
Done with this confusable. These links stay specific to "scalding" and "scolding".
- Full dictionary entry for "scalding" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "scolding" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #16,068 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "scalding" and "scolding" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "scalding vs scalping". 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 #16,068 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.