Which to use
“nan” is a noun and “non” is an adverb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #15,226
- “nan” frequency rank
- #515
- “non” frequency rank
- 15741
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | nan | non |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Synonym of maid: a servant girl. | Obsolete form of none. |
Where the eye mixes nan and non
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between nan and non
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: nan is /næn/ while non is /nɑn/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - a in “nan” becomes o in “non”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs adverb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 15741, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
nan is recorded at frequency rank #15,226, classified as anoun, pronounced /næn/. non is at rank #515, tagged as anadv, pronounced /nɑn/.
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 15741, this pair ranks #462,094 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of nan vs non
Shared letters: n. Private to "nan": a. Private to "non": o.
"nan" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "non" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "nan" and "non" mean the same thing in a sentence?
In ordinary English text, does "nan" or "non" show up more?
Useful next steps
Eye-level mix-up between "nan" and "non" is sorted above. Next: full entries or other pairs that share a letter shape.
- Full dictionary entry for "nan" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "non" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #462,094 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "nan" and "non" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "nan vs NPL". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #462,094 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.