Which to use
“starting” and “startling” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #915
- “starting” frequency rank
- #17,252
- “startling” frequency rank
- 18167
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | starting | startling |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | present participle and gerund of start | present participle and gerund of startle |
Where the eye mixes starting and startling
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 8 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between starting and startling
A purely visual mix-up. starting (/ˈstɑɹtɪŋ/) and startling (/ˈstɑɹ.tl̩.ɪŋ/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 18167, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
starting is recorded at frequency rank #915, classified as averb, pronounced /ˈstɑɹtɪŋ/. startling is at rank #17,252, tagged as averb, pronounced /ˈstɑɹ.tl̩.ɪŋ/.
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 18167, this pair ranks #446,706 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of starting vs startling
Shared letters: aginrst. Private to "starting": -. Private to "startling": l.
"starting" · 8 letters · shape CCVCCVCC · "startling" · 9 letters · shape CCVCCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "starting" and "startling" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "starting" or "startling"?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "starting" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "startling" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #446,706 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "starting" and "startling" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "snarling vs startling". 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 #446,706 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.