# neat vs NEC

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### neat
*adjective · IPA /ˈniːt/ · frequency rank #7,251*
Clean, tidy; free from dirt or impurities.

### NEC
*phrase · frequency rank #19,399*
Initialism of not elsewhere classified, used in classification codes such as Standard Industrial Classification, International Standard Classification of Occupations, DSM-IV-TR, DSM-5, ICD-9, and ICD-10.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-09-03.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/vs/neat-vs-nec