Which to use
“virtual” is an adjective and “virtually” is an adverb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #4,202
- “virtual” frequency rank
- #4,641
- “virtually” frequency rank
- 8843
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | virtual | virtually |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | In effect or essence, rather than in fact or reality; also, imitated, simulated. | Almost but not quite. |
Where the eye mixes virtual and virtually
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 7 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses virtual with virtually
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: virtual is /ˈvɜːt͡ʃʊəl/ while virtually is /ˈvɚ.t͡ʃə.wə.li/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 2 extra letter(s) - “virtual” sits inside “virtually”, and the parts of speech differ too (adjective vs adverb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 8843, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
virtual is recorded at frequency rank #4,202, classified as anadj, pronounced /ˈvɜːt͡ʃʊəl/. virtually is at rank #4,641, tagged as anadv, pronounced /ˈvɚ.t͡ʃə.wə.li/.
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 8843, this pair ranks #500,441 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of virtual vs virtually
Shared letters: ailrtuv. Private to "virtual": -. Private to "virtually": y.
"virtual" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVVC · "virtually" · 9 letters · shape CVCCVVCCV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "virtual" and "virtually" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary English text, does "virtual" or "virtually" show up more?
Useful next steps
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "virtual" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "virtually" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #500,441 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "virtual" and "virtually" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "virtually vs vitally". 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 #500,441 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.