Which to use
“qu” is a noun and “quo” is a verb - they look or sound alike but fill different roles in a sentence.
- #20,195
- “qu” frequency rank
- #9,947
- “quo” frequency rank
- 30142
- confusion score
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | qu | quo |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | An administrative subdivision of China roughly equivalent to districts, distinguished from the more rural "counties" (xian). | quoth |
Letter map: qu vs quo
Shared letters muted; letters that set qu and quo apart highlighted. Shared run: 2.
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
Our dataset has no pronunciation recorded for both members, so the reliable separator here is grammatical: qu is anoun and quoaverb. On the page they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “qu” sits inside “quo”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 30142, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.
qu is recorded at frequency rank #20,195, classified as anoun. quo is at rank #9,947, tagged as averb, pronounced /kwəʊ/.
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 30142, this pair ranks #357,016 of 530,003 scored English confusable pairs - roughly mid-pack for confusability.
Orthographic DNA of qu vs quo
Shared letters: qu. Private to "qu": -. Private to "quo": o.
"qu" · 2 letters · shape CV · "quo" · 3 letters · shape CVV