Which to use
“pulling” and “pumping” are a confusable English pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.
- #3,971
- “pulling” frequency rank
- #9,516
- “pumping” frequency rank
- 13487
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | pulling | pumping |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | present participle and gerund of pull | present participle and gerund of pump |
Where the eye mixes pulling and pumping
Muted = shared; highlighted = the visual trap. They share 5 letters in sequence.
Why the eye confuses pulling with pumping
A purely visual mix-up. pulling (/ˈpʊlɪŋ/) and pumping (/ˈpʌmpɪŋ/) 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 13487, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
pulling is recorded at frequency rank #3,971, classified as averb, pronounced /ˈpʊlɪŋ/. pumping is at rank #9,516, tagged as averb, pronounced /ˈpʌmpɪŋ/.
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 13487, this pair ranks #475,496 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.
Orthographic DNA of pulling vs pumping
Shared letters: ginpu. Private to "pulling": l. Private to "pumping": m.
"pulling" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC · "pumping" · 7 letters · shape CVCCVCC
Known mistypes of this pair
Frequently Asked Questions
Do "pulling" and "pumping" mean the same thing in a sentence?
Frequency check: "pulling" vs "pumping" - which ranks higher?
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 "pulling" with definition, IPA, and generated misspellings. Word entry
- Full dictionary entry for "pumping" - compare definitions side by side with the headword page. Word entry
- This pair ranks #475,496 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs in this corpus vintage. Corpus statistics
- "pulling" and "pumping" also get mixed up with nearby pairs, the highest-scored neighbour is "pimping vs pumping". 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 #475,496 of 530,003 scored English pairs, corpus vintage 2026-09-03, not spelling advice.