Which to use
“update” is a noun and “updated” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #2,094
- “update” frequency rank
- #2,768
- “updated” frequency rank
- 4862
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | update | updated |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | An additional piece of information, an addition to existing information. | simple past and past participle of update |
Where the eye mixes update and updated
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 6 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between update and updated
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: update is /ˈʌp.deɪt/ while updated is /ʌpˈdeɪtɪd/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “update” sits inside “updated”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 4862, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
update is recorded at frequency rank #2,094, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈʌp.deɪt/. updated is at rank #2,768, tagged as averb, pronounced /ʌpˈdeɪtɪd/.
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 4862, this pair ranks #517,414 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of update vs updated
Shared letters: adeptu. Private to "update": -. Private to "updated": -.
"update" · 6 letters · shape VCCVCV · "updated" · 7 letters · shape VCCVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "update" and "updated" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "update" or "updated"?
After this comparison
Eye-level mix-up between "update" and "updated" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "update" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "updated" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #517,414 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "update" and "updated" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "undated vs updated". 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 #517,414 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.