Which to use
“steeper” is an adjective and “steeply” is an adverb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #32,606
- “steeper” frequency rank
- #31,777
- “steeply” frequency rank
- 64383
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | steeper | steeply |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | comparative form of steep: more steep | In a steep manner. |
Letter map: steeper vs steeply
Shared letters muted; letters that set steeper and steeply apart highlighted. Shared run: 5.
Role in the sentence - steeper and steeply
Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: steeper is anadjective and steeplyanadverb. On the page they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 64383, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
steeper is recorded at frequency rank #32,606, classified as anadj. steeply is at rank #31,777, tagged as anadv.
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 64383, this pair ranks #78,020 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of steeper vs steeply
Shared letters: epst. Private to "steeper": r. Private to "steeply": ly.
"steeper" · 7 letters · shape CCVVCVC · "steeply" · 7 letters · shape CCVVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "steeper" and "steeply" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "steeper" or "steeply"?
After this comparison
Pair "steeper" vs "steeply" is on the table, pick a follow-up below.
- Full dictionary entry for "steeper" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "steeply" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #78,020 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "steeper" and "steeply" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "steeply vs sternly". 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 #78,020 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.