# hew vs hob

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### hew
*verb · IPA /hjuː/ · frequency rank #46,513*
To chop away at; to whittle down; to mow down.

### hob
*noun · IPA /hɑb/ · frequency rank #38,889*
A kind of cutting tool, used to cut the teeth of a gear.

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