Which to use
“nep” is a noun and “nod” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #45,538
- “nep” frequency rank
- #10,582
- “nod” frequency rank
- 56120
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | nep | nod |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Catmint, catnip; Nepeta cataria. | To incline the head up and down, as to indicate agreement. |
Where the eye mixes nep and nod
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 1 letter in sequence.
Visual trap between nep and nod
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: nep is /nɛp/ while nod is /nɒd/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 56120, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
nep is recorded at frequency rank #45,538, classified as anoun, pronounced /nɛp/. nod is at rank #10,582, tagged as averb, pronounced /nɒd/.
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 56120, this pair ranks #128,583 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of nep vs nod
Shared letters: n. Private to "nep": ep. Private to "nod": do.
"nep" · 3 letters · shape CVC · "nod" · 3 letters · shape CVC
Frequently Asked Questions
Can "nep" and "nod" be used interchangeably?
Frequency check: "nep" vs "nod" - which ranks higher?
After this comparison
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "nep" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "nod" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #128,583 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "nep" and "nod" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "nep vs NPL". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #128,583 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.