Which to use
“wither” is a verb and “witted” is an adjective - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #28,431
- “wither” frequency rank
- #34,749
- “witted” frequency rank
- 63180
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | wither | witted |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To shrivel, droop or dry up, especially from lack of water. | having a specified form of wit (intellectual ability) |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set wither and witted apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: wither is /ˈwɪðɚ/ while witted is /ˈwɪtɪd/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs adjective), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 63180, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
wither is recorded at frequency rank #28,431, classified as averb, pronounced /ˈwɪðɚ/. witted is at rank #34,749, tagged as anadj, pronounced /ˈwɪtɪd/.
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 63180, this pair ranks #84,418 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of wither vs witted
Shared letters: eitw. Private to "wither": hr. Private to "witted": d.
"wither" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC · "witted" · 6 letters · shape CVCCVC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "wither" and "witted" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "wither" or "witted"?
Remembering wither vs witted
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “wither”; for an adjective, it's “witted”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “wither” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable