Which to use
“dues” is a noun and “duh” is an intj - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #17,601
- “dues” frequency rank
- #12,961
- “duh” frequency rank
- 30562
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | dues | duh |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | plural of due | A disdainful indication that something is obvious. |
Where the eye mixes dues and duh
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses dues with duh
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: dues is /djuːz/ while duh is /dɜː/. 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 (noun vs intj), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 30562, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
dues is recorded at frequency rank #17,601, classified as anoun, pronounced /djuːz/. duh is at rank #12,961, tagged as anintj, pronounced /dɜː/.
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 30562, this pair ranks #353,543 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of dues vs duh
Shared letters: du. Private to "dues": es. Private to "duh": h.
"dues" · 4 letters · shape CVVC · "duh" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Known mistypes of this pair
- dues ← deus · duess · duse · udes
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "dues" and "duh" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "dues" or "duh"?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "dues" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "duh" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #353,543 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "dues" and "duh" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "dikes vs dues". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #353,543 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.