writhingvswritingsWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: writhing is a adjective, writings is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“writhing” is an adjective and “writings” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#38,249
“writhing” frequency rank
#7,411
“writings” frequency rank
45660
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature writhing writings
Definition Bended in twisting struggle. plural of writing

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set writhing and writings apart are highlighted. They share 7 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

8 ch
writhing
8 ch
writings

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: writhing is anadjective and writingsanoun. On the page they share most of their letters but differ in 4 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 45660, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

writhing is recorded at frequency rank #38,249, classified as anadj. writings is at rank #7,411, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈɹaɪtɪŋz/.

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 45660, this pair ranks #219,126 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.

Orthographic DNA of writhing vs writings

Shared letters: ginrtw. Private to "writhing": h. Private to "writings": s.

"writhing" · 8 letters · shape CCVCCVCC  ·  "writings" · 8 letters · shape CCVCVCCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • writhingrwithing · wirthing · wrihting · writhhing · writhign · writhingg · writhinng · writhnig
  • writingsrwitings · wirtings · wriitngs · writigns · writinggs · writingss · writinngs · writinsg

Frequency comparison

writhing#38,249
writings#7,411

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "writhing" and "writings" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "writhing" is an adjective and "writings" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "writhing" or "writings"?
"writings" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #7,411 in our English list, against #38,249 for "writhing". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering writhing vs writings

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list