skilledvsstillerWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“skilled” and “stiller” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#5,841
“skilled” frequency rank
#42,921
“stiller” frequency rank
48762
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature skilled stiller
Definition Having or showing skill; skillful. comparative form of still: more still

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set skilled and stiller apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
skilled
7 ch
stiller

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

skilled and stiller form a confusable pair in the English index, two distinct headwords that are easily confused because they look alike, sound alike, or both. They share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions - close enough that the eye skips over the difference, far enough that meaning fully diverges. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 48762, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

skilled is recorded at frequency rank #5,841, classified as anadj, pronounced /skɪld/. stiller is at rank #42,921, 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 48762, this pair ranks #189,988 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Frequency comparison

skilled#5,841
stiller#42,921

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "skilled" and "stiller" be used interchangeably?
No, "skilled" and "stiller" have distinct meanings and cannot be swapped without changing the meaning of a sentence. Understanding the specific definition and context for each word is essential for correct usage.

Remembering skilled vs stiller

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “skilled” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list