rankingvsrunningWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: ranking is a verb, running is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“ranking” is a verb and “running” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#44,671
“ranking” frequency rank
#15,496
“running” frequency rank
60167
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature ranking running
Definition Participe présent du verbe rank. Course à pied axée sur la recherche de la performance, la compétition.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set ranking and running apart are highlighted. They share 5 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

7 ch
ranking
7 ch
running

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: ranking is \ˈɹæn.kɪŋ\ while running is \ʁœ.niŋ\. 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 noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 60167, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

ranking is recorded at frequency rank #44,671, classified as averb, pronounced \ˈɹæn.kɪŋ\. running is at rank #15,496, tagged as anoun, pronounced \ʁœ.niŋ\.

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 60167, this pair ranks #99,092 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of ranking vs running

Shared letters: ginr. Private to "ranking": ak. Private to "running": u.

"ranking" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC  ·  "running" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • rankingarnking · rakning · ranikng · rankign · rankingg · rankinng · rankking · ranknig
  • runningrnuning · rrunning · runing · runinng · runnign · runningg · runninng · runnnig

Frequency comparison

ranking#44,671
running#15,496

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "ranking" and "running" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "ranking" is a verb and "running" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "ranking" or "running"?
"running" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #15,496 in our French list, against #44,671 for "ranking". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering ranking vs running

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “ranking”; for a noun, it's “running”.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “ranking” 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