Which to use
“oni” is a noun and “oui” is an intj - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #36,267
- “oni” frequency rank
- #44,386
- “oui” frequency rank
- 80653
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | oni | oui |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A Japanese evil spirit or demon. | Synonym of yes. |
Where the eye mixes oni and oui
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence. oni (VCV) and oui (VVV) run the same length but a different consonant-vowel pattern - the shape difference is usually the fastest tell.
Why the eye confuses oni with oui
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: oni is /ˈəʊni/ while oui is /wiː/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by a single letter - n in “oni” becomes u in “oui”, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs intj), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 80653, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
oni is recorded at frequency rank #36,267, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈəʊni/. oui is at rank #44,386, tagged as anintj, pronounced /wiː/.
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 80653, this pair ranks #19,330 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - among the most confusable pairs.
Orthographic DNA of oni vs oui
Shared letters: io. Private to "oni": n. Private to "oui": u.
"oni" · 3 letters · shape VCV · "oui" · 3 letters · shape VVV
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "oni" and "oui" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Which is more common, "oni" or "oui"?
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 "oni" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "oui" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #19,330 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "oni" and "oui" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "omi vs oui". Nearby pair
Confusion rank #19,330 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.