Which to use
“hey” and “hic” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #787
- “hey” frequency rank
- #49,392
- “hic” frequency rank
- 50179
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | hey | hic |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | An exclamation to get attention. | An approximation to the sound of a hiccup, used e.g. to indicate drunkenness. |
Where the eye mixes hey and hic
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
A purely visual mix-up. hey (/heɪ/) and hic (/hɪk/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 50179, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
hey is recorded at frequency rank #787, classified as anintj, pronounced /heɪ/. hic is at rank #49,392, tagged as anintj, pronounced /hɪk/.
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 50179, this pair ranks #176,636 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of hey vs hic
Shared letters: h. Private to "hey": ey. Private to "hic": ci.
"hey" · 3 letters · shape CVV · "hic" · 3 letters · shape CVC