Which to use
“strive” and “strove” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #10,942
- “strive” frequency rank
- #43,398
- “strove” frequency rank
- 54340
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | strive | strove |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To try to achieve a result; to make strenuous effort; to try earnestly and persistently. | simple past of strive |
Where the eye mixes strive and strove
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Look-alike desk: strive vs strove
A purely visual mix-up. strive (/ˈstɹaɪv/) and strove (/ˈstɹɔʊv/) 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 a single letter - i in “strive” becomes o in “strove”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 54340, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
strive is recorded at frequency rank #10,942, classified as averb, pronounced /ˈstɹaɪv/. strove is at rank #43,398, tagged as averb, pronounced /ˈstɹɔʊv/.
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 54340, this pair ranks #141,824 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of strive vs strove
Shared letters: erstv. Private to "strive": i. Private to "strove": o.
"strive" · 6 letters · shape CCCVCV · "strove" · 6 letters · shape CCCVCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "strive" for "strove" ever safe?
Frequency check: "strive" vs "strove" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "strive" and "strove" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "strive" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "strove" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #141,824 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "strive" and "strove" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "stover vs strove". 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 #141,824 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.