Word Choice: Faze vs. Phase

In case any Star Trek fans were wondering, the word ‘phase’ doesn’t mean ‘to shoot with a phaser’.

Now that’s out of the way, a more common mistake when using this term is confusing it with the identical-sounding ‘faze’.

However, ‘phase’ and ‘faze’ have very different meanings, so you wouldn’t want to mix them up in your written work. In this post, we outline how to use these words correctly.

Faze (Disturb)

To ‘faze’ someone is to disturb or disconcert them, usually emotionally:

He’d expected a friendly greeting, so his mother’s anger fazed him.

By comparison, someone who is cool under pressure is said to be ‘unfazed’:

Unfazed by the chaos around her, Terri set to work.

Phase (A Stage or Process of Development)

The term ‘phase’ is a little more complicated, as it can be either a noun or a verb. As a noun, a ‘phase’ is typically a stage in something’s development:

The next phase of the plan involves implementing a feedback system.

‘Phase’ also has a few technical definitions in different subject areas, such as chemistry and electronics, but these are generally variations on the idea of ‘phase’ as a stage in a process.

As a verb, ‘phase’ means ‘to carry out in stages’, so is primarily used when we change something over time (either by ‘phasing it in’ or ‘phasing it out’):

The new IT system will be phased in throughout the year.

It can also be used without ‘in’ or ‘out’, simply to describe a gradual process:

We will phase the review over the next six months.

Faze or Phase?

As demonstrated above, ‘faze’ and ‘phase’ are importantly distinct despite their similar pronunciation. Happily, this difference makes it easier to know which to use in any given situation:

• If someone is upset or emotionally disturbed, the word you need is ‘faze’;
• If you’re describing a stage in a process, or something that can be broken down into stages, the correct term is ‘phase’.