Device vs Devise: Which One Do You Need?
Device is the noun — a thing. Devise is the verb — to invent.
A clever device. They devised a plan.
The test that settles it
Same pattern as advice / advise. The c word is a thing; the s word is an action, and it ends in a Z sound.
“a mobile ___” → a thing, so device.
“___ a strategy” → an action, so devise.
Device: the noun
A piece of equipment, or a clever plan or technique. Countable: a device, three devices.
Turn off all electronic devices.
A safety device.
The flashback is a narrative device.
Can you put a in front? Then device.
Devise: the verb
To think something up — a plan, a system, a method. It conjugates: devises, devised, devising.
She devised a way round the problem.
They are devising new tests.
He devised the whole scheme.
Swap in invent or work out. If it works, devise.
Side by side
| Device | Devise |
|---|---|
| Noun | Verb |
| Ends in an S sound | Ends in a Z sound |
| Countable | Takes endings: devising |
| A listening device | To devise a test |
The exception
The idiom uses the plural noun and means to leave someone to do as they please. It has nothing to do with equipment — the old sense of device was a scheme or inclination.
Where people get it wrong
| Incorrect | Correct | Why |
|---|---|---|
| They deviced a solution. | They devised a solution. | The action. |
| a medical devise | a medical device | A thing. |
| left to their own devises | left to their own devices | The idiom takes the noun. |
| We need to device a plan. | We need to devise a plan. | The verb. |
Practice — choose the right word, then check yourself.
- The lab ___ a new procedure.
- Charge the ___ overnight.
- Can you ___ a fairer system?
- Irony is a literary ___.
- They were left to their own ___.
Show the answers
1. devised 2. device 3. devise 4. device 5. devices
Frequently asked
Which other pairs work this way?
Advice / advise, practice / practise and licence / license in British spelling. The noun takes c, the verb s.
Is devise used in law?
Yes — to devise property is to leave it in a will. That sense is a noun as well: a devise.
More words people confuse
