Mink or minx?
mink is a noun meaning “Any semi-aquatic, carnivorous mammal in the Mustelinae subfamily, similar to…”; minx is a noun meaning “A flirtatious, impudent, or pert young woman”. In written English (wordfreq, 2021 data) mink is about 4.6 times as common as minx.
What is the difference between mink and minx?
| mink | minx | |
|---|---|---|
| Part of speech | noun | noun, verb, suffix |
| Meaning | Any semi-aquatic, carnivorous mammal in the Mustelinae subfamily, similar to weasels, with dark fur, native to Europe and America, of which two species in… The fur or pelt of a mink, used to make apparel | A flirtatious, impudent, or pert young woman Used transitively when followed by it: to behave like a minx, that is, in a flirtatious and impudent manner To make (someone) like a minx; (intransitive) to become like a minx |
| Example | none recorded | none recorded |
| Forms | minks | minxes |
| Pronunciation | /mɪŋk/ | /mɪŋks/ |
| In writing | 1.4 times per million words | about once in every 3 million words |
Sources: mink and minx in the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Every current meaning of mink and minx
mink
- 1
Any semi-aquatic, carnivorous mammal in the Mustelinae subfamily, similar to weasels, with dark fur, native to Europe and America, of which two species in different genera are extant: the American…
- 2
The fur or pelt of a mink, used to make apparel
- 3
An article of clothing made of mink
- 4
ScotlandderogatoryslangA person with poor personal hygiene; a smelly person
minx
- 1
A flirtatious, impudent, or pert young woman
- 2
Used transitively when followed by it: to behave like a minx, that is, in a flirtatious and impudent manner
- 3
Used in the names of several twisty puzzles
- 4
datedderogatoryA promiscuous woman; also, a mistress (“the other woman in an extramarital relationship”) or a prostitute
- 5
To make (someone) like a minx; (intransitive) to become like a minx
Source: the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); obsolete, archaic, dialect and rare senses left out.
Which is more common, mink or minx?
mink appears 1.4 times per million words; minx about once in every 3 million words.
mink 1.4 times per million wordsminx about once in every 3 million words
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How many people search mink vs minx?
“mink vs minx” is searched about 70 times a month on Google and 10 on Bing in the United States. Google counts close variants of a query together (“minx vs mink”, “mink or minx”).
Sources: Google Ads keyword data through DataForSEO and Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, the average month from September 2025 to August 2026.