Which to use
“statistic” is an adjective and “statistics” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #16,137
- “statistic” frequency rank
- #2,503
- “statistics” frequency rank
- 18640
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | statistic | statistics |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Alternative form of statistical. | A discipline, principally within applied mathematics, concerned with the systematic study of the collection, presentation, analysis, and interpretation of data. |
Where the eye mixes statistic and statistics
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 9 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: statistic vs statistics
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: statistic is /stəˈtɪs.tɪk/ while statistics is /stəˈtɪs.tɪks/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “statistic” sits inside “statistics”, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 18640, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
statistic is recorded at frequency rank #16,137, classified as anadj, pronounced /stəˈtɪs.tɪk/. statistics is at rank #2,503, tagged as anoun, pronounced /stəˈtɪs.tɪks/.
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 18640, this pair ranks #443,549 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of statistic vs statistics
Shared letters: acist. Private to "statistic": -. Private to "statistics": -.
"statistic" · 9 letters · shape CCVCVCCVC · "statistics" · 10 letters · shape CCVCVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- statistic ← sattistic · sstatistic · staitstic · statisitc · statisstic · statistci · statisticc · statisttic
- statistics ← sattistics · sstatistics · staitstics · statisitcs · statisstics · statistcis · statisticcs · statisticss
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "statistic" and "statistics" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "statistic" or "statistics"?
After this comparison
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "statistic" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "statistics" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #443,549 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "statistic" and "statistics" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "statist vs statistic". 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 #443,549 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.