Which to use
“pity” is a noun and “pry” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #7,373
- “pity” frequency rank
- #26,212
- “pry” frequency rank
- 33585
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pity | pry |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | A feeling of sympathy at the misfortune or suffering of someone or something. | To peer closely and curiously, especially at something closed or not public. |
Where the eye mixes pity and pry
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 2 letters in sequence.
Visual trap between pity and pry
These two trip readers on the page rather than in the ear: pity is /ˈpɪt.i/ while pry is /pɹaɪ/. Spoken aloud the problem disappears. In writing it persists, because they differ by 1 letter(s) in length, and the parts of speech differ too (noun vs verb), which is usually the fastest check. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 33585, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pity is recorded at frequency rank #7,373, classified as anoun, pronounced /ˈpɪt.i/. pry is at rank #26,212, tagged as averb, pronounced /pɹaɪ/.
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 33585, this pair ranks #328,128 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of pity vs pry
Shared letters: py. Private to "pity": it. Private to "pry": r.
"pity" · 4 letters · shape CVCV · "pry" · 3 letters · shape CCV
Known mistypes of this pair
- pity ← ipty · pitty · pityy · piyt · ppity · ptiy
Frequently Asked Questions
Is swapping "pity" for "pry" ever safe?
In ordinary English text, does "pity" or "pry" show up more?
Useful next steps
Pronunciation already separates them, if the page still looks alike, the dictionary links below settle it.
- Full dictionary entry for "pity" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "pry" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #328,128 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "pity" and "pry" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "PPA vs pry". Nearby pair
- Recorded mistypes exist for at least one side of this pair, useful when a spell-checker or OCR lands on the wrong form. See mistypes
Confusion rank #328,128 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.