usurp vs usurper, What's the Difference?

Which to use

“usurp” is a verb and “usurper” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#41,933
“usurp” frequency rank: #47,996
“usurper” frequency rank: 89929
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature	usurp	usurper
Definition	To seize power from another, usually by illegitimate means.	One who usurps.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set usurp and usurper apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

5 ch

usurp

7 ch

usurper

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: usurp is /juˈsɝp/ while usurper is /juˈsɜɹ.pəɹ/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “usurp” sits inside “usurper”, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 89929, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

usurp is recorded at frequency rank #41,933, classified as averb, pronounced /juˈsɝp/. usurper is at rank #47,996, tagged as anoun, pronounced /juˈsɜɹ.pəɹ/.

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 89929, this pair ranks #4,646 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of usurp vs usurper

Shared letters: prsu. Private to "usurp": -. Private to "usurper": e.

"usurp" · 5 letters · shape VCVCC · "usurper" · 7 letters · shape VCVCCVC

Known mistypes of this pair

usurp ← suurp · usrup · ussurp · usupr · usurpp · usurrp · uusrp
usurper ← suurper · usruper · ussurper · usuprer · usurepr · usurperr · usurpper · usurpre

Frequency comparison

usurp#41,933

usurper#47,996

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "usurp" and "usurper" be used interchangeably?

No - they are not even the same part of speech. "usurp" is a verb and "usurper" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.

Which is more common, "usurp" or "usurper"?

"usurp" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #41,933 in our English list, against #47,996 for "usurper". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering usurp vs usurper

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “usurp”; for a noun, it's “usurper”.
See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “usurp” entry
Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable