Which to use
“lin” and “lying” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #9,623
- “lin” frequency rank
- #2,164
- “lying” frequency rank
- 11787
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | lin | lying |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | To desist, to stop, to cease. | present participle and gerund of lie (“to rest in a horizontal position”) |
Where the eye mixes lin and lying
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 3 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between lin and lying
A purely visual mix-up. lin (/lɪn/) and lying (/ˈlaɪ.ɪŋ/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 2 letter(s) in length. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 11787, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
lin is recorded at frequency rank #9,623, classified as averb, pronounced /lɪn/. lying is at rank #2,164, tagged as averb, pronounced /ˈlaɪ.ɪŋ/.
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 11787, this pair ranks #485,124 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of lin vs lying
Shared letters: iln. Private to "lin": -. Private to "lying": gy.
"lin" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "lying" · 5 letters · shape CVVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
- lying ← liyng · llying · lyign · lyingg · lyinng · lynig · lyying · yling
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "lin" for "lying" ever safe?
In ordinary English text, does "lin" or "lying" show up more?
What to do next
Visual near-miss handled. Browse the word pages or a neighbour when the next look-alike shows up.
- Full dictionary entry for "lin" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "lying" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #485,124 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "lin" and "lying" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "lin vs LSC". 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 #485,124 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.