Which to use
“vetted” and “vexed” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #27,329
- “vetted” frequency rank
- #36,813
- “vexed” frequency rank
- 64142
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | vetted | vexed |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Having undergone an investigation and been approved. | annoyed, irritated or distressed |
Letter map: vetted vs vexed
Shared letters muted; letters that set vetted and vexed apart highlighted. Shared run: 4. vetted runs 6 letters (CVCCVC) against vexed's 5 (CVCVC) - the length gap alone is often enough to separate them once you know to check it.
Pair insight - vetted / vexed
vetted and vexed are indexed as a confusable English pair. We have no recorded pronunciation or part of speech for both members, so the spelling overlap is what we can show you: they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 64142, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
vetted is recorded at frequency rank #27,329, classified as anadj. vexed is at rank #36,813, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ˈvɛkst/.
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 64142, this pair ranks #79,273 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of vetted vs vexed
Shared letters: dev. Private to "vetted": t. Private to "vexed": x.
"vetted" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "vexed" · 5 letters · shape CVCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "vetted" for "vexed" ever safe?
Frequency check: "vetted" vs "vexed" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
You've compared "vetted" and "vexed". Here's where to go from here.
- Full dictionary entry for "vetted" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "vexed" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #79,273 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "vetted" and "vexed" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "veep vs vexed". 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 #79,273 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.