# pining vs pitting

> English confusable word pair

## The two words

### pining
*verb · IPA /ˈpaɪnɪŋ/ · frequency rank #39,480*
present participle and gerund of pine

### pitting
*noun · frequency rank #29,038*
The formation of pits on a surface because of corrosion.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/vs/pining-vs-pitting