Which to use
“hew” is a verb and “hoy” is a noun - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #46,513
- “hew” frequency rank
- #26,117
- “hoy” frequency rank
- 72630
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | hew | hoy |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To chop away at; to whittle down; to mow down. | A small coaster vessel, usually sloop-rigged, used in conveying passengers and goods, or as a tender to larger vessels in port. |
Where the spellings diverge
Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set hew and hoy apart are highlighted. They share 1 letter 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: hew is /hjuː/ while hoy is /hɔɪ/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (verb vs noun), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 72630, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
hew is recorded at frequency rank #46,513, classified as averb, pronounced /hjuː/. hoy is at rank #26,117, tagged as anoun, pronounced /hɔɪ/.
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 72630, this pair ranks #42,408 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of hew vs hoy
Shared letters: h. Private to "hew": ew. Private to "hoy": oy.
"hew" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "hoy" · 3 letters · shape CVV
Frequency comparison
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "hew" and "hoy" be used interchangeably?
Which is more common, "hew" or "hoy"?
Remembering hew vs hoy
The fastest way to pick the right one every time.
- Check the role first: if you need a verb, it's “hew”; for a noun, it's “hoy”.
- See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “hew” entry
- Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable