pngvspubWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“png” and “pub” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#18,161
“png” frequency rank
#4,880
“pub” frequency rank
23041
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature png pub
Definition Alternative letter-case form of PNG; Portable Network Graphics, an open protocol for digital images. A public house where beverages, primarily alcoholic, may be bought and consumed, also providing food and sometimes entertainment such as live music or television.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set png and pub apart are highlighted. They share 1 letter in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

3 ch
png
3 ch
pub

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. png (/pɪŋ/) and pub (/pʌb/) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they share most of their letters but differ in 2 positions. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 23041, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

png is recorded at frequency rank #18,161, classified as anoun, pronounced /pɪŋ/. pub is at rank #4,880, tagged as anoun, pronounced /pʌb/.

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 23041, this pair ranks #412,152 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of png vs pub

Shared letters: p. Private to "png": gn. Private to "pub": bu.

"png" · 3 letters · shape CCC  ·  "pub" · 3 letters · shape CVC

Frequency comparison

png#18,161
pub#4,880

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "png" and "pub" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (/pɪŋ/ versus /pʌb/) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "png" or "pub"?
"pub" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #4,880 in our English list, against #18,161 for "png". The two are close in frequency, so neither is a safe default; check the meaning rather than guessing.

Remembering png vs pub

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “png” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list