CuivscuspWhat's the difference?

Quick tell: Cui is a name, cusp is a noun, so they fill different roles in a sentence.

Which to use

“Cui” is a name and “cusp” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.

#39,761
“Cui” frequency rank
#27,112
“cusp” frequency rank
66873
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature Cui cusp
Definition A surname from Mandarin. A sharp point or pointed end.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set Cui and cusp apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

3 ch
Cui
4 ch
cusp

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: Cui is aname and cuspanoun. On the page they differ by 1 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 66873, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

Cui is recorded at frequency rank #39,761, classified as aname. cusp is at rank #27,112, tagged as anoun, pronounced /kʌsp/.

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 66873, this pair ranks #66,028 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.

Orthographic DNA of Cui vs cusp

Shared letters: cu. Private to "Cui": i. Private to "cusp": ps.

"Cui" · 3 letters · shape CVV  ·  "cusp" · 4 letters · shape CVCC

Known mistypes of this pair

  • cuspccusp · csup · cuspp · cussp · ucsp

Frequency comparison

Cui#39,761
cusp#27,112

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "Cui" and "cusp" be used interchangeably?
No - they are not even the same part of speech. "Cui" is a name and "cusp" a noun, so a sentence built for one is usually ungrammatical with the other.
Which is more common, "Cui" or "cusp"?
"cusp" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #27,112 in our English list, against #39,761 for "Cui". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering Cui vs cusp

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

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