# erm vs et

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### erm
*intj · IPA /ɜːm/ · frequency rank #21,789*
Used in hesitant speech, or to express uncertainty.

### et
*verb · IPA /ɛt/ · frequency rank #2,200*
Pronunciation spelling of ate, the simple past and past participle of eat.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/vs/erm-vs-et