Which to use
“covert” is an adjective and “covey” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #14,096
- “covert” frequency rank
- #46,402
- “covey” frequency rank
- 60498
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | covert | covey |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Secret, surreptitious, concealed. | A brood or family of partridges (family Phasianidae), which includes game birds such as grouse (tribe Tetraonini) and ptarmigans (tribe Tetraonini, genus Lagopus). |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set covert and covey apart are highlighted. They share 4 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: covert is /ˈkəʊvɜːt/ while covey is /ˈkʌvi/. 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 (adjective vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 60498, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
covert is recorded at frequency rank #14,096, classified as anadj, pronounced /ˈkəʊvɜːt/. covey is at rank #46,402, tagged as anoun, pronounced /ˈkʌvi/.
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 60498, this pair ranks #99,888 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of covert vs covey
Shared letters: ceov. Private to "covert": rt. Private to "covey": y.
"covert" · 6 letters · shape CVCVCC · "covey" · 5 letters · shape CVCVV
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "covert" and "covey" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "covert" or "covey"?
Remembering covert vs covey
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need an adjective, it's “covert”; for a noun, it's “covey”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “covert” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable