Which to use
“scour” is a verb and “scoured” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #30,216
- “scour” frequency rank
- #35,066
- “scoured” frequency rank
- 65282
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | scour | scoured |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To clean, polish, or wash (something) by rubbing and scrubbing it vigorously, frequently with an abrasive or cleaning agent. | Wool that has undergone scouring to remove grease. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set scour and scoured 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: scour is averb and scouredanoun. On the page they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “scour” sits inside “scoured”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 65282, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
scour is recorded at frequency rank #30,216, classified as averb, pronounced /ˈskaʊə/. scoured is at rank #35,066, tagged as anoun.
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 65282, this pair ranks #73,533 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of scour vs scoured
Shared letters: corsu. Private to "scour": -. Private to "scoured": de.
"scour" · 5 letters · shape CCVVC · "scoured" · 7 letters · shape CCVVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "scour" and "scoured" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "scour" or "scoured"?
Remembering scour vs scoured
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “scour”; for a noun, it's “scoured”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “scour” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable