Which to use
“agh” is an intj and “an” is an article - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #44,044
- “agh” frequency rank
- #30
- “an” frequency rank
- 44074
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | agh | an |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | An exclamation of mild horror, disgust or frustration | Form of a (all article senses). |
Where the eye mixes agh and an
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Visual trap between agh and an
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: agh is [æː(x)] while an is /ˈæn/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (intj vs article), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 44074, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
agh is recorded at frequency rank #44,044, classified as anintj, pronounced [æː(x)]. an is at rank #30, tagged as anarticle, pronounced /ˈæn/.
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 44074, this pair ranks #233,954 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of agh vs an
Shared letters: a. Private to "agh": gh. Private to "an": n.
"agh" · 3 letters · shape VCC · "an" · 2 letters · shape VC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "agh" and "an" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary English text, does "agh" or "an" show up more?
What to do next
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "agh" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "an" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #233,954 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "agh" and "an" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "agh vs amb". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #233,954 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.