Vice or vise?
vice is a noun meaning “Bad or immoral behaviour. (Especially often, a habit that harms oneself or…”; vise is a noun meaning “An instrument consisting of two jaws, closing by a screw, lever, cam, or the…”. They sound the same (/vaɪs/). In written English (wordfreq, 2021 data) vice is about 83 times as common as vise.
What is the difference between vice and vise?
| vice | vise | |
|---|---|---|
| Part of speech | noun, verb, adjective, preposition, prefix | noun, verb |
| Meaning | Bad or immoral behaviour. (Especially often, a habit that harms oneself or others) Any of various crimes related (depending on jurisdiction) to weapons, prostitution, pornography, gambling, alcohol, tobacco, or drugs A tool for drawing lead into cames, or flat grooved rods, for casements | USAn instrument consisting of two jaws, closing by a screw, lever, cam, or the like, for holding work, as in filing A situation in which one's freedom of choice is constrained To clamp with or as with a vise |
| Example | Pride is a vice, not a virtue | Russian consuls everywhere have been instructed to visé passports of geologists presenting membership cards, which will also facilitate… |
| Forms | vices | vises visés |
| Pronunciation | /vaɪs/ /ˌvaɪ̯s-/ /ˌvʌɪ̯s-/ | /vaɪs/ /viːˈzeɪ/ |
| In writing | 51 times per million words | about once in every 2 million words |
Sources: vice and vise in the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Every current meaning of vice and vise
vice
- 1
Bad or immoral behaviour. (Especially often, a habit that harms oneself or others)
Pride is a vice, not a virtue
- 2
CommonwealthAlternative spelling of vise (“mechanical screw apparatus used for clamping”)
- 3
Alternative spelling of vise (“to hold or squeeze with a vice”)
- 4
in place of; subordinate to; designating a person below another in rank
vice president
- 5
datedInstead of; in place of; versus
- 6
One who acts in place of a superior
c. 1850s-1870s, Edward Minister and Son, The Gazette of Fashion and Cutting-Room Companion The health of the Vice was proposed in appropriate language; in replying, Mr. Marriott…
- 7
Taking the place or rank of (another person); deputy
- 8
Any of various crimes related (depending on jurisdiction) to weapons, prostitution, pornography, gambling, alcohol, tobacco, or drugs
vise
- 1
USAn instrument consisting of two jaws, closing by a screw, lever, cam, or the like, for holding work, as in filing
- 2
To clamp with or as with a vise
- 3
Alternative form of visé
- 4
A situation in which one's freedom of choice is constrained
Source: the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); obsolete, archaic, dialect and rare senses left out.
Which is more common, vice or vise?
vice appears 51 times per million words; vise about once in every 2 million words.
vice 51 times per million wordsvise about once in every 2 million words
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How many people search vice vs vise?
“vice vs vise” is searched about 1,300 times a month on Google and 70 on Bing in the United States. Google counts close variants of a query together (“vise vs vice”, “vice or vise”).
Sources: Google Ads keyword data through DataForSEO and Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, the average month from September 2025 to August 2026.